


Between the Good

by msmadeline_clancy



Series: Ked Universes [10]
Category: Ghost Whisperer
Genre: College, F/M, Fighting, New York City, break-up and make-up, cute couple, long distance, police officer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2019-03-14
Packaged: 2019-11-18 07:10:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 113,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18115838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msmadeline_clancy/pseuds/msmadeline_clancy
Summary: The good, the bad, and the ugly of Katie and Ned during her second year away for college. COMPLETE





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Meowser_Clancy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meowser_Clancy/gifts).



**A/N: So, first off this is set during Katie's sophomore year away at NYU for college. Troubling times for Ked, I know, but it will end well in the end. We all know that at least haha. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Katie tapped her foot as she leaned over the counter to grab the soda wand from behind it and fill a customer's drink. It wasn't even her table, they'd just flagged her down for more soda.

Tonight was hectic. With a game in Jersey, the diner was getting a lot of the post-game rush, which was great for tips, but Katie's feet were killing her and she still had three hours of her shift left. Then she had to close up and clean with Whitney. Who sucked at sweeping.

Great. She knew she wouldn't get home until at least one, maybe two-in-the-morning.

Once it was filled she made her way back to the table and slid to the customer with a smile, before going to her next table that had had a chance to take a look at the menu a little.

It was a pair of guys, who were each wearing matching Jets jerseys. They both looked up at the same time and she smiled cheerfully at them. "Hi, welcome to Joe's diner!" She exclaimed. "My name is Katie and I'll be taking care of you guys tonight. Have you two ever been here before?"

"I don't think so. Have we been here before Georgie?" the older of the two said, looking back at his menu.

"I don't think so," the younger one said. "We're just stopping for a bite in the city on our way home from the game."

"That was quite the game. My dad was texting me all throughout it," she laughed, smiling at them. "Hope you both had a good time." It looked to be a father and son pair, but she couldn't assume right off. "Can I start you gentlemen off with some soda or water?"

"We'll both take waters," the older one answered and she quickly slipped away.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, but she knew it probably wasn't her dad about the game. It was most likely Hannah. They were bickering about dirty dishes. Hannah was supposed to do them and once again hadn't.

She usually picked up the slack, but she was over it. Hannah was an adult and it was their apartment. It wasn't just Katie's responsibility to do the dishes an he wasn't about to let her best friend push the slack off on her or Brandon. It didn't matter if Brandon was Hannah's fiance or not, he didn't have to do the dishes because Hannah hated to. Plus Katie had a full schedule and couldn't, and they were starting to smell.

If it wasn't her best friend, it was Ned. She was currently trying to coax him to drive to see her for Andrew's house party the following day. As much as she loved her friend across the hall, she didn't want to go to the party alone. She knew it was a long shot that he'd come for just a few hours when they already had plans for him to come and see her for Halloween this upcoming weekend.

As she began to fill the cups with water, she took her phone out to check it for a moment. She was happier to see that it was her boyfriend.

_**October 25th - 9:30 pm Ned: Maybe. I'll get back to you. Jamison is riding my ass to get caught up on this month's reports** _

Katie sighed, slipping her phone back into her pocket. She almost wanted to say she would just type up the reports for him instead, but already had an Art History term paper due. Even if she was such a better and faster typer then he was, she couldn't take any more on her plate.

She grabbed the water glasses and walked back to the table with the two guys. "Here are those waters," she said cheerfully. "Can I get you guys any starters? They are half off from nine until close."

"What are you thinking, bud? Should we stick to healthy like mom said?" The older man said looking up at his son who sat across from him.

Katie's eyes flicked to the younger blonde who sat back in his seat and looked over at her. He smiled and looked back at the menu. "Are the cheese sticks any good?"

"They are delicious. I'd recommend the bigger order. I can never get enough of them," she explained, opening pocketbook and putting her pen to the paper.

"I think we'll get the bigger order then, like you said," the older man said. "With ranch and blue cheese."

"Alright, I'll put that right in for you two." She said and slipped away.

Katie quickly walked around the counter and punched in her code into the register. She put in the order and pulled out her phone, replying to Ned.

_**9:43 pm - Katie: That sucks babe. I really didn't want to go alone. I mean Hannah is coming, but she will end up getting super drunk and I'm just not in the moo to have a massive hangover on my one weekend morning off.** _

Not that Katie didn't love to get her to drink on with her best friend, but sometimes she just didn't need to drink that much to have fun. She sent it and sighed. Her shift seemed never-ending.

She couldn't wait to go home and go to bed.

* * *

Katie trudged up the seven flights of stairs to her apartment. It was nearly one in the morning. The laughter from behind her apartment door was getting louder and louder the closer she got. She shoved her key and the door and walked in, closing the door.

At first, neither Hannah or Andrew noticed that she was home. She took the opportunity and took her jacket and shoes off, rubbing the soles of her feet as she relaxed against the door. She nearly moaned. It felt so good to get her shoes off.

After a few minutes of massaging her feet, she realized that the drunken pair in the kitchen had simply upped their volume, more than likely on account of all the beer they were consuming. She could see that half of the case they'd gotten were stacked on the small kitchen table.

"Fuck," she hummed, rubbing her foot for another moment before she realized what she saw. "Really guys?"

"Oh, shit." Hannah hid behind the kitchen island. "Katie's home and I still didn't do the dishes." Hannah had never been good at whispering when she was drunk.

"Why the hell are there beer cans stacked on the kitchen table?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Hannah, I know you've been drinking, but I'm talking to you."

"I drank the beer and Hannah drank the wine," Andrew confessed, burping embarrassingly loud.

Hannah burst out laughing as she stood up, leaning against the counter for support as she set the wine bottle on the counter too. It was nearly empty.

Katie's anger slipped for a moment and she laughed, rolling her eyes. "Just clean it up," she yawned and waved them off. "I'm tired." She walked over to the counter and took the bottle. "I think you've had enough." She tipped it back and finished the last of it off. "Do the damn dishes before I get the chance to see them."

During that brief moment, the drunk laughter from the pair died down, just enough for Katie to set the bottle back down.

"Are you going right to bed?" Andrew asked.

She rubbed her eyes and nodded. "Yeah, I'm tired."

"Darn," he sighed. "Okay. I was hoping to snag a little time with you and Han, once you got home. Before the party."

"Sorry," she squeezed his arm. "Maybe next time. Goodnight guys."

* * *

Ducking through the crowd of people in the tiny apartment, Katie shielded her cup. The last thing she needed right now was to spill anything all over her dress or someone else. A quick glance over her shoulder showed that she hadn't lost Toby in the crowd yet.

Had he seen her? Or was he just going to get another drink? And had she or Hannah forgot to mention he wasn't allowed to be fucking invited to Andrew?

Katie didn't put it past Toby to crash, but ugh, she couldn't remember. Andrew was friendly. He probably thought Toby was gay for God's sakes.

With a growl of frustration, she changed directions and slid between two couples grinding. The bass of the music pounded in her blood, mimicking the frantic flight of her heart. She didn't even want to come to this stupid Halloween party, but Andrew was her friend and she even thought Ned was going to come up, but at the last minute, canceled. It just wasn't a good time for him to skip out early at work and of course, Katie understood.

The theme of the party was "End of the World," so Katie had dressed as a fallen angel from Supernatural and Hannah was decked out with bloody bandages on her arm and forehead, a fake bow and arrows strapped to her back as a Hunter. When she'd seen the familiar face of her regrettable ex-boyfriend, Katie had groaned into her cup and made a break for the next room. His hair was streaked with makeup to appear dirty and bloody, his face dressed and his clothes tattered to look like a zombie.

It was ridiculous.

She had to find her best friend. Or Andrew.

Someone. Anyone who could save her from Toby possibly seeing her.

Katie eventually found Hannah and they ducked into Andrew's bedroom. Luckily it was empty and she laid back on the bed.

"What? Is there an emergency?" Hannah was panicking and followed her. "Do we have to get out of here or something?"

"No," she groaned. "Toby is out there. I had to hide."

"What the hell! He wasn't invited, was he?" Hannah scoffed and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"I don't know," she muttered. "Did we tell Andrew about him?"

"I don't remember," Hannah sighed, biting her nails before grabbing Katie's hand. "Let's go get him. He's in the kitchen."

They weren't able to find Andrew, but after a few shots, Katie forgot about Toby for long enough to dance with Hannah. She managed to avoid him for a good hour, until but he finally spotted her and started pushing through the crowd to reach her.

That's when she'd started to run. Well, duck and weave at as rapid a pace as she could without punch sloshing threateningly in a red Solo cup. With a bend of her torso and a swish of the hips, she curved around the last people between her and the apartment door.

Once in the hallway, she leaned a shoulder against the wall and slid down the room until she's in the corner, close to a doorway on the adjoining wall, yet relatively hidden from the door she just came through.

For a moment, she wished she'd given in to Ned's suggestion that she should've gone home instead of going to the party. She would've driven back with Ned on Friday. She would've seen her mom.

She should've gone to Grandview.

"Hey, Katie," the voice at her side made her jump. "Whoa, didn't mean to startle you."

"Andrew," she breathed his name out and she smiled at him. "Thank God. I thought you were someone else. I didn't realize you left."

"Great costume. Fallen angel? Let me guess.. you're a Supernatural fan," Andrew motioned to her wings and white dress before setting the paper bag he was holding, on the ground.

"Thanks. And yes, despite everything wrong about the spiritual world in that show," she gazed around the hallway and relaxed just a little. They were alone. Then she swept her gaze over him. "Yours isn't so bad, either."

Andrew was covered in fake blood and mud, his shirt ripped in several places. He laughed and shrugged. "I'm just a zombie. Everyone is," he sighed.

"I think yours is more unique," she reassured him. There was a bandage wound around his left thigh, seeping with faux blood and she smiled. "Nice touch."

He nodded and stepped closer, leaning against the wall next to her. "I almost dressed as a victim of Sharknado, but thought hobbling around on crutches all night might not be so fun. Why are you out there?"

Biting her lip, Katie shook her head and leaned back against the wall too. "It got a little too packed in there," she wasn't lying. It was packed in there, but she wasn't really bothered by it. Not as much as she was bothered by Toby's presence. "Hey, did you invite the guy from 7C?"

Toby didn't deserve a name. That bastard.

"I think so, why?" He asked. "Does it matter?"

"Did I mention that he's a prick and we dated?" She groaned and looked over at him.

Talking to Andrew was easier than she'd thought. She hadn't even realized she didn't tell him about Toby. She probably just talked about Ned. He was so good. She didn't like to think about the other guy before him.

Andrew was a good friend. She hadn't known what to think of him at first. He'd been borderline annoying the first few days they ran into each other around the building. She usually ran into him getting her mail or doing laundry.

One time he came into the coffee shop she was writing at one time, and for some reason, he kept sitting beside her, despite her scowl and short answers to his attempts to talk with her. She had been trying forever to get her writing to spark and finally had.

But when she had finally realized he wasn't hitting on her and just being friendly, she opened up and found herself sliding into the empty seat beside him when she came in again. Andrew had smiled at her and cracked a joke about the book she was holding. Holding her hand over her mouth to keep in the laughter, she'd snorted and he only could shrug. After that, they started hanging out together and exchanged phone numbers. She'd found herself opening up to him, little by little. Hannah loved him. They've covered their hobbies and favorites books and authors. She needed to get down to business. She guessed it started with Toby for her.

"It was more of a thing," she shrugged it off. "We weren't even really dating. It was only for like a month or two, but he's a creep."

Andrew looked back at her, one eyebrow raised. "And you've been avoiding him ever since."

She nodded and gave him a sheepish look. "It was an awful breakup because he hit me and I hit him back twice as hard," she laughed, remembering how purple his eye had been. "It's hard to avoid the guy when he's across the hall, but yeah, I try to."

"Uh-huh." Once more, Andrew rubbed his face and then looked back over at him. "Well, I'm sorry. I wish I'd known. Did he see you?"

"I don't know," she groaned. "I ducked out the second I saw him and I don't think anyone saw me come out here."

"What do you want to do?" Her friend asked. She looked back down and saw how close she's standing to him now. He's not that much taller than her, but at this range, she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes. "Do you wanna just go home, Katie?"

"I think so. I don't want to see or talk to him," she sighed. "I'm glad I got to talk to you though."

"Totally understandable," Andrew said and hugged her tightly. "Next time he's blacklisted. If it makes you feel better, I only invited him because I thought he was gay."

She laughed against his shoulder, hugging him even tighter. She loved Andrew. He was such a good friend.

* * *

"Isn't this great, Ned?" Katie asked him enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling with glee as she brought a huge scoop of stringy orange pulp and seeds from the inside of the pumpkin, hollowing it out.

This was all her idea, of course. He wasn't the biggest fan of Halloween anymore, but Katie loved the holiday.

They had to carve Jack O'Lanterns! She'd told him earlier today as she dragged him up and down row after row at the pumpkin patch just outside the city, searching for two that she deemed perfect.

"I'm up to my elbows in pumpkin goop and my hands are cold. I don't think I'm enjoying this quite as much as you are," Ned answered, pulling apart a bunch of fibrous strands of pulp.

"Are you kidding me?" She laughed as she dropped another scoopful of mush onto the newspapers that covered the tabletop. "This is all part of the experience! These pumpkins are going to look fantastic on the fire escape. Really make it feel festive, you know?"

"Yes," he kissed her cheek as he stood, going to wash his hands once he finished scooping out his pumpkin. "Very festive."

"I know you don't like Halloween, Ned," she said, scooping the last bit of mush from her pumpkin, moving to wash her hands as well. "But thank you for being a good sport anyway."

He rolled his eyes, scrubbing the orange off his hands. He'd do anything for her, even carve stupid pumpkins for two hours. He smiled at her in return, stepping back from the sink to dry his hands with a paper towel. She started to scrub her hands and he kissed her neck, feeling her lean into him. She moaned, shutting the faucet and turning to face him. He bit his lip, grabbing her waist and planting one on her lips as he wet hands grasped his neck.

"Let's go finish the pumpkin," she moaned as he sucked at her collarbone. "We can do this after... I promise."

"We have that costume party at your work to get ready for," he groaned at the reminder that they had agreed to attend Katie's boss' Halloween party. "Are you really going to make me dress up in a costume for this, Katie?"

"Everyone has to come in costume! My boss insisted." She reminded him. "C'mon, it'll be fun. We'll drink, get all handsy on the dance floor and eat food. I'm only asking you to go with me because everyone met Toby last year... I want them to meet you. You're the real deal."

"I know," he sighed, feeling her tug him toward the table again. "I'm going because I love you, not because I like the idea of going to a Halloween party."

"I love you too," she kissed him and sat him in his chair. "Now carve. We're on a schedule."

He responded by sticking his tongue out and playfully flicking a piece of pumpkin at her.

* * *

Half an hour later, their carving mess was cleaned up and Katie proudly placed their finished pumpkins on the kitchen counter, ready to put them on the fire escape of her apartment. Ned had nothing but envy when he first saw what Katie had carved. She somehow had transformed her pumpkin into a cute grinning jack o'lantern.

It was simple, two triangle eyes and a lopsided grin. Very traditional.

"Do you like it?" She asked as he kissed her cheek.

"Love it," he said, groaning as he looked over at his. "Mine sucks." His pumpkin, despite his best efforts, looked like it was carved by a child. She noticed the way his shoulders slump as he looked at his.

She wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head in the crook of his neck. "It's cute, Ned. Promise."

"It's fine Katie" he shrugged. "I've never been much of an artist."

She rubbed her hand up his back, smiling. "I think it looks good, babe. I like it. It's very you." It was his best rendition of a vampire that he could carve, being that he had absolutely no artistic ability at all. "I'm just happy you tried."

"You're so full of shit, Katie." He laughed, turning around to face her. "But I love you for it."

"You love me enough to humor me and wear a costume tomorrow night to my work party tonight?" She grinned and grasped his shoulders excitedly, hoping he'd say that he would. She crossed her fingers even. "I know I threw it at you earlier. I'm sorry."

"Oh, I suppose." He grumbled in mock suffering, rolling his eyes at her. "Only because it's for you, though."

"Sweet! I may have had my mom send me a few options for you to try on." She sat him down in his chair at the kitchen table and ran to her room.

Such small concessions on his part always made her so happy and she was just so damned adorable when she was like this around any holiday. Though he'd never admit it, Katie was the only person in his life who could sweet talk him into doing anything she wanted. Well, just about anything.

"You can't tell me that you're not at least a little bit excited to get dressed up," she said from inside her room.

"I'll do it, but I wouldn't say I'm excited about it." He replied, laughing as he went to look at the pumpkins on the fire escape again. They kind of looked okay now that he looked at them together. He took a picture with his phone and sent it to his mom, knowing she'd want to see them.

Delia texted him back almost immediately. Something along the lines of how good Katie was for him and was hoping he had fun. She also wanted to see their costumes if there were any.

"Oh, come on, Ned!" She groaned, laughing a little. "How can you not love a holiday? Halloween is the one time of year that you can be anyone or anything that you want to!"

"There is nothing I'd rather be more than your boyfriend," he said, walking over from the window as his mom replied again. "What are you dressing up as? My mom wants to know."

"It's a surprise and tell Delia to ask my mom," she whispered, seeing him enter her room. "Ned!" She closed her closet door, where her costume was hanging up. "I was going to bring them out to you. I didn't want you to see mine."

"Well, can you give me a hint?" He grinned, tucking his phone in his pocket. "Is it sexy?"

"Why does my costume have to be sexy? Maybe... I want to be scary." She folded her arms in front of her chest to make a point and rolled her eyes. "It's sexy, I guess."

"God, I hope it's hot," he murmured, leaning sideways and sneaking a playful slap to his girlfriend's butt to drive his point home. He licked his lips. "You'd look so good in whatever you wear babe."

"Do you really want to know that bad?" She asked, rolling her eyes at him.

"Well, yeah," he moved in a little closer, kissing her lightly.

"I'm gonna be little red riding hood," she sighed.

"You look so good in red," he groaned seductively. "I'll even be your big bad wolf if you wanted," he whispered in her ear, wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her hips against his. "You can ride me, Little Red. I'll even let you leave on your sassy red cape if you want."

"What on Earth has gotten into you, Ned Banks? Do you really have that much of a hard-on for my Halloween costume?" She gasped, turning her face toward his just in time for him to capture her lips in a kiss that's just a bit too needful and lasted just a moment too long. She touched his face and smiled as she pulled back, touching her lips and shaking her head. "You are my bad wolf already Ned."

"I would've thought you'd know me a little better by now. I do imagine you wearing these sexy kinds of outfits all the time when I'm bored." He smirked, turning his attention to the bed where she had a few outfits laid out for him. "See, there's even a wolf costume here."

"That's for if you want to match me," she sighed, moving to look at the stuff on the bed. "Which you don't have to."

"I want to match you," he grinned as he pulled his shirt over his head and then kissed her again. "Want to match me?"

"Oh, you bet," she laughed, pushing the costumes off the bed and pulling her own shirt over her head. "Now, go."

* * *

Later that night, when it came time to get ready for the party, Katie and Ned quickly showered. He left the bathroom, a towel wrapped tightly around his waist.

"Hey Ned," Katie poked her head out of the bathroom. "Can you grab my costume? It's hanging up on the back of my closet door."

"Sure," he went to her closet door, opening it.

Her costume was right where she said it would be, hanging up on the back of her door. As brought it down, he grinned. She was going to look smoking hot in this. The hanger held a very short red dress and an even shorter red velvet cape that cape with a choker. He brought her the hanger, which she took before he could see anything besides what he thought was a lace strap as turned around and quickly closed the door.

"You look so hot in red," he chuckled, knocking again.

"Go get dressed," she laughed from the other side of the door. "We're on a time schedule. You already distracted me enough."

He smirked and pushed up from the doorway to do what she'd asked.

Katie stood in front of the fogged up mirror after she'd just pulled on a black corset, which her mother had sent with a note, which read:

_Thought this would look just perfect on you. Not only will it make the dress look better, but an even better surprise for Ned. Love you baby girl_

Her mother had such good taste in lingerie. She was so excited.

Katie even had Hannah come in to help tie it closed so that Ned wouldn't see anything. Her best friend left the bathroom laughing as Ned lingered by the door to try to get a peek.

"Give me something," he followed the blonde, who turned green eyes on him and shook her head. "Please."

"What's in it for me?" She exclaimed, smiling at him. "You already know you're gonna die when you see it. Just wait and give her this."

He groaned, backing off. He definitely knew that he was in for something great already. It was another twenty minutes before the bathroom door opened and he was waiting on the couch in the wolf costume.

Katie stepped out, her dress barely covering her thighs, but her knee-high leather boots are what killed him more. Her makeup was small, mascara, stunning eyeliner and beautiful red lipstick. The dress was tight against her curves, pushing her breasts up as she walked out into the living room.

"What do you think?" She asked, fixing the choker around her neck as she rested her hands on his shoulder, sitting on his knee.

"I'm thinking we shouldn't go to this party," he hissed. He was glad he hadn't put the mask on because he kissed her, his hands grasping her legs and parting them for her to straddle him. "You're too hot..."

"C'mon," she laughed, pulling her lips from his as she stood up. "Let's go have some fun at the party. I promise it'll be fun."

"Okay," he stood up, pressing their lips together once more on their way out.

* * *

The party was in full swing when Katie and Ned walked in the door, each of them carrying the Jack O'Lantern that they'd carved. They found a place to set them down and then took a moment to look around before pouring themselves a drink from the black witch's cauldron that served as punch bowls.

The whole diner was illuminated with twinkling orange and purple lights that hang from the ceiling above, and fake cobwebs were strung up in the windows and doorways. Several festive Jack O'Lanterns decorated the tables, glowing toothy grins at the guests as they helped themselves to bowls of pretzels, potato chips, and Halloween candies. Loud music had most party-goers swaying and dancing with bottles of beer or cups of rum punch in their hands.

"Katie!" Joe, her boss, yelled out as he emerged from the crowd of guests and rushed in their direction happily. "Nice costume!"

"Looking good yourself!" Katie nodded and hugged him.

Her boss was dressed in full pirate regalia and he looked as if he's ready to set sail on a grand pirate ship at any moment. "And who's this?" Joe turned to Ned, who moved his mask up, to show his face. "Is this that new boyfriend you mentioned?"

"Yes. This is Ned, my boyfriend." She introduced to two, who shook hands. "We've been together almost a year now."

"Glad to see you're with someone better than that prick before," Joe nodded, patting Ned's back as he stepped back. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," Ned said, trying to talk over the music.

"Yeah. We're gonna go try and snag some food," Katie said.

"Alright, I'll see you around," Joe said and disappeared into the crowd.

Ned spun her around, bringing her to the dance floor. He was never one to be a party pooper. He loved parties, especially when Katie was on his arm.

It wasn't long until Katie's stomach rumbled and they were on a mission to find some food. More selections had been put out and they sat a table, eating the food, both too hungry to speak. After, Ned went to refill their drinks and he stopped at the food tables again. He watched as Katie continued to eat her cheese curds as she was on her phone until she glared at a group of girls, who were dressed as naughty fallen angels, red sequined devils, and flirty little fairies. He hardly gave any of them a second glance as they giggled and walked past him when he poured both of them another cup of rum punch and filled a plate full of snacks.

He looked around, finding her in the crowd and gave her a wink and she smiled back him. He'd taken the mask off, saying it was too hot and she reluctantly let him keep it off. It was just easier to find his face in the crowd of people.

When the hour grew late and the party died down, they left, walking the five blocks to her and Hannah's apartment. After checking the mail and finding a Halloween card from her grandma in a bunch of coupons and other stuff, they took the elevator to the seventh floor and she squeezed his hand tight wither hers, lacing their fingers together.

"Thanks for being such a good sport about dressing up for the party. I know you didn't really want to." She smiled at him as the doors opened on the elevator. They stepped out and made their way to her door, both carrying their pumpkins. "I really appreciate you coming and meeting everyone. They all really liked you."

"If dressing up is all it takes to make you this happy, I suppose I could get used to it." He conceded, smiling. He kissed her then briefly as she leaned on the wall, swaying a little.

As Ned pulled away, she fished her keys out of her purse and opened the door. "I'm good Ned. Stop worrying."

"Are you sure?" He asked, grabbing her pumpkin that she balancing on her knee. "And I guess holiday parties can be fun."

"So much fun Ned," she smiled as they walked in and he put their pumpkins on the fire escape. Ned pulled back as Katie closed the window, leaning over the couch to do so, her skirt pulling on her ass. "Like the view?"

"For sure," his hands spanned her over her waist and brought her close once she closed the window. He patted her ass lightly, feeling her laugh as she kissed his neck. "You ready for bed yet?"

"Almost," she pulled back, smiling before she sighed and her hands fell at her sides. "Dammit. I left the mail in the hallway."

He came with her as she grabbed it, fishing the few pieces that had fallen on the floor. As she stood up, she smiled at him and his hands came around her waist. "You look so sexy Katie," he whispered, kissing neck as he leaned her against the wall. She held the mail tightly against his head as he did, moaning. "I had so much fun. The Christmas party is definitely a go."

"Oh good. That's on December twelfth." She told him, turning her head as he pulled back.

"I'm glad you could tell me earlier this time. I'll make sure I get it off. We're lucky I got Devon to cover for me this time." He laughed cupping her cheek as he kissed her. "I told him he owed you after all the picking on you he did in middle school."

"He so does," she groaned. She found herself laughing as she locked her legs around his hips and he picked her up.

Ned's lips were moving against his, his hands seeming to be everywhere at once as he pinned her against the wall. Her lips were at his neck, sucking whatever skin his costume failed to cover. It was the sound of a voice coming up the stairs when Katie slid down the wall, her feet hitting the ground quickly, panting as she pulled Ned closer to cover herself.

"Goodbye, mom. Love you. I mean, keep on with what you were doing," Toby chuckled, stepping up the last step of the stairs with green whole food bags in hand. He tucked his phone in his pocket and stepped toward them. "I definitely know how good the Katie show can be. I know how cold it can be too." Ned turned his head then. He was over this dude. Over everything to do with Toby. "There's nothing I wouldn't enjoy more than seeing you pull that costume off her right now."

"Right," he said, pulling away from her. "And who are you again? The ex-boyfriend across the hall?" Ned stepped toward Toby and Katie clung to his arm, the alcohol she'd drank at the party making more of an appearance again.

Toby didn't answer and Ned's anger pumped through his veins as he saw him chuckle and look over his girlfriend again. Toby wet and bit his bottom lip as he lingered around her chest and then looked back at Ned, whose hand was curling into a fist, just itching to hit him. He wouldn't give that prick what he wanted.

It had been weeks since either of them had seen each other, but feeling Katie lean into his shoulder and remembering how drunk she was, he turned, his hand resting protectively and respectively resting at the small of her back.

"Just get stay the fuck out of our lives Toby," he scoffed, helping her back into the apartment.

"It was nice to see you both," Toby said smugly, stepping back with his groceries in hand as he turned to his apartment door. "Especially you Katie. You're delectable."

"Let's get you inside and get you some water," Ned muttered, helping her toward the door. "You look exhausted."

"Okay. I like the sound of water," she whispered as she leaned in close to his face, her lips brushing the shell of his ear, nibbling on it. "I have something else I want to show you..."

"What?" He laughed and for a split second, he felt his cheeks blush at her response. He saw the way her fingers went toward the straps of her dress, but he stopped her as he pulled the front door of her apartment closed and locked it. What was under her dress? Then he regained his composure, kissing her lips lightly. "Katie, not here."

"C'mon then, let's go to bed," she whispered as Ned laid her down on the couch. He got her a drink of water and they just sat there for a few minutes. "I think I feel a little better," she said.

"Good," he smiled, kissing her lips briefly as she stood up and walked to her bedroom, but not before putting him on the bed in her room. "Wait here for me," she instructed him. "Take your costume off while I get ready and take my makeup off."

He'd taken his costume off like she asked, still keeping his jeans and police department shirt that he was wearing before. Ned had almost expected her to come in stark naked, but after glancing up from his phone, he found himself very mistaken.

Katie stood there, her cape still around her, but no longer in dress, but in a black corset that failed to cover anything. It was pure black lace, hugged tightly to the curve of her waist, skimmed her hips and ended at the very top of her thighs, making her bare olive-toned legs too long. Her nipples could be seen, flushed and hard. Just the way he liked them.

"Oh dear God," he marveled as he stared at her, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. "Hello..." She stood in the doorway, breasts pushed up, ass on full display and legs that stretched out like a staircase, leading to his picture-perfect heaven. For a few moments, he couldn't breathe as his eyes drank in a fantasy that had been brought to life. His gaze traveled over her again, chuckling. "I love this…"

"I can see you're in shock," she told him as she stepped closer.

He took off his shirt quickly after that, leaving him in just his jeans. "Let's just say I'm lucky," he agreed, meeting her halfway with a passionate kiss.

She giggled as she ran her fingers through his hair and their lips mingled. His lips had always been her weakness.

"And I'm very lucky too, if I do say so myself..." She kissed him again, letting him pick her up and throw her onto the bed.

He closed the door as he pulled his belt loose from his jeans and shoved those down before getting into bed with her. This was just the beginning to their first Halloween night in.

* * *

Katie wasn't coming home for Thanksgiving. She had two midterm papers due and was swamped with studying.

Ned had tried to prepare himself for it. He had somewhat seen it coming when she didn't come home for Halloween, but it still felt like he was deflating when he got the confirmation.

"It's more of a family time anyway," she told him over the phone. He understood. He did. "Plus my dad is working, so the plans are a little weird. I think my mom is taking everyone to grandma Faith's in Maine this year."

"Yeah, my mom is making a small dinner at the apartment. I think I'll just work and try to earn some overtime," he sighed, putting his key in the door of his mom's apartment. "Maybe then I'll be able to move out by the new year."

"Ooh, that would be nice." Katie giggled on the other end. "But you know I wish I could come. It's only a long weekend, really, and it's so close to winter break," she continued nervously.

"Katie," he intercepted as he walked into the empty apartment. He shrugged off his jacket and tugged his boots off while keeping the phone pressed to his ear. "It's fine. Really. You should stay in the city and work on your papers."

"I just don't want you to feel like I'm forgetting about you," she sighed on the other end. There was some crackling like she moved out of bed and the familiar squeak of her bedroom door as she closed it in the background. "This long-distance thing should be fifty-fifty. I should drive to see you more. You come all the time."

"Because I live with my mom and I love having the freedom of being with just you in the city. Don't be hard on yourself, babe," he reassured her, walking into his bedroom and locking the door behind him. "You have to have your priorities in order with school."

"You should be my number one priority, Ned," she muttered. "I feel bad. I really do."

He ignored that. "It's okay. I understand."

He did understand. But it's not okay. He missed her, so much. He hadn't seen her since Halloween. It was her turn to drive to see him. He doesn't blame her at all and he really does agree that it's best for her to stay in the city, but it sucked. The entire situation just sucked entirely.

"Hey, I'm starting dinner, so can I video chat you?" She asked a moment later, followed by the clatter of pots and pans behind her voice.

"Sure," he said and accepted the pop-up video chat request as he sat down on his bed. He smiled when her face popped up as she propped her phone up on the counter. "Hey, there's my favorite face."

"Hi handsome," she smiled at him before she turned around to turn on the burner. "I have no idea what I'm making yet, besides this chicken breast. Hannah is already on her way back to Grandview with Brandon. Something to do with wedding planning.

"That's nice for you. You had the whole place to yourself for a couple of days," he tried to be positive, even if he wished he could drive and see her. He was already signed up to work the weekend though. "What about potatoes?"

"I don't know that's a lot of carbs. I'm trying to stick to my diet up until Hannah and Brandon's wedding in May," she shrugged, turning around with a sigh. "Maybe. I might make asparagus too."

"That would be a good choice," he said, laying back on his bed. "It would even it out."

Maybe they would be able to survive this long distance crap.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Time to get down to business... this is early December since the last chapter ended just before Thanksgiving. Katie and Ned's anniversary is the same day as Lana's birthday, December 6th. Which is also my actual little brother's birthday lol. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

It was the week before finals and Katie was stretched thin as she could be. To her absolute devastation, she couldn't make it home for her and Ned's one year anniversary either. She had an early lecture the next day and it was way too close to finals to blow any classes off, especially her Art History class. Luckily, Ned was able to get the weekend off and drove to see her.

They met at a waterfront Italian restaurant for a nice dinner. Katie had ordered a vegetable penne and Ned got something smothered in cheese. They'd shared a glass of wine and cheesecake for dessert.

They'd agreed not to get expensive gifts, but Katie knew how disappointed Ned was when his father's watch stopped working when it cracked during a hostile situation at work. Her mother happened to know a good jeweler who could work some magic for a good price.

Ned had sent her a bouquet of flowers this morning before he'd even gotten to the city. It was the first time any guy had bought her flowers, and they had to be expensive. There were white and pink carnations, her favorite. They were had to get this time of year.

One time, Toby had gotten her a rose. And her dad had gotten her flowers after so many dance recitals and birthdays, but this was Ned.

The card had made her cry. Not that that wasn't an easy feat.

_I looked up the meaning of white and pink carnations. They mean I cannot be without you. I couldn't think of a better sentiment on this day. Forever didn't mean much before you were in my life, Katie. I love you so much_

At dinner, he'd given her another gift. A bracelet, and from her knowledge of working with her mom she knew it was from the seventies. He knew how much she liked these things, like her mom.

"I love you," she smiled, licking the cheesecake off her lips s she looked down at the bracelet again, touching the jewels and then looking back at him. "You didn't have to get me this..."

"Yes, I did," he smiled at her. "You didn't have to fix my dad's watch," he said, leaning back into his chair, his hand sitting on top of hers, his fingers rubbing over her wrist.

"Yes, I did," she whispered. "Let's get out of here."

He agreed and brought her hand to his lips as they stood, pulling on their jackets. They headed for the door and Ned paid the bill quickly. He draped his arm around Katie as they walked out. It had just begun to snow when they exited the restaurant. Katie pulled out her stocking cap from her purse and held onto his hand as they stepped in the street.

"Wanna grab a movie to watch on our way back?" He asked, rushing across the street with her quickly, leaning up against his truck. "Something action- maybe it will keep you awake."

"Sure," she nodded, squeezing his arm. "That would be great. Maybe it will keep me awake."

They decided on the newest Marvel movie. Once they got back to her apartment and changed into their pajamas, they slid into bed. Katie pulled out her computer and put in the disc before relaxing into Ned's chest.

He had already tried to explain some of the backstories to her. It's not an easy feat considering she's only seen the Iron Man and Spiderman movies. She had always had such a crush on Tom Holland. Ned rolled his eyes when she repeatedly called Hawkeye 'Nighthawk' and she rolled hers as he gasped when Scarlett Johansson appeared on screen for the first time. She elbowed him too for good measure.

Katie tried to stay awake. She really, really did.

She loved Robert Downey Jr., Tom Holland, and the actress she liked from How I Met Your Mother was even in it. But in the end, movies were always a killer for her.

It was so long and she was exhausted from school and work.

Katie blinked awake when the end credits were rolling and Ned's arm was draped over her. It felt so good. Like really, really, really good. And he smelt good like he always did. Sweet but decidedly manly. She turned her head into him, breathing in the smell of his cotton shirt and pressing a kiss into it. "Is it over?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Yeah. Great movie, huh, babe?" He asked with a knowing smile.

"Uh, yeah. I watched more than half of it, I think," she yawned, tapping his cheek.

"That's better than the last one we tried," he laughed.

Katie tucked herself into bed more snugly as Ned closed her laptop and brought it over to her desk in the corner of her room. She turned her face up as she pressed a kiss to his throat as he moved back into bed, wrapping her arm around his torso. "This is the moment I would freeze," she whispered against the skin of his throat.

He shivered a little, then stilled. His fingers held her a little tighter to him. "What do you mean?" He pulled away to look down into her eyes, but she stubbornly burrowed further into him.

"If I could freeze a moment," she whispered again. "It would be this one. If I could just never have to say goodbye to you—" She bit her lip and pulled out of his arms, embarrassed. It was mainly her fault that they couldn't see each other. She could drive up more weekends than not, but she didn't like stressing over the three-hour drive there and back with her class load. She rolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. "I'm just afraid of what will happen," she admitted finally. "When this stops. When tonight ends and the hard stuff begins." She looked over at him then. "When you go home…"

He was silent for a long moment. She could feel his eyes on her, but she doesn't look at him. She hoped he couldn't see her hands shake or her silent tears as they rolled down, off her cheeks. He reached out to push the hair back from her face and his thumb brushes against her cheek, and she closed her eyes.

"Hey," he wiped away the tears and she turned to look at him. "We'll come out of this," he said gently, his thumb still rubbing soothing circles on her skin. He leaned down to kiss her bare shoulder. "I know how hard not seeing each other has been on both of us. Your school needs your full attention and work is crazy all the time for me. I'll try and get more weekends off if I can." He leaned in, pressed his lips against her lips gently. A ghost of a kiss. "But we shouldn't talk about sad things tonight. It's our anniversary," he kissed her forehead next, then rolled onto his back. "Try to get some sleep, if you're still tired."

She sat up defiantly. "I don't want to sleep."

He chuckled. "What do you—"

It's her turn to cut him off this time. She kissed him hard, nothing like the gentle comfort he offered her moments ago. His lips were slack against hers, but after a brief pause, he kissed her back, the pressure still too gentle for the intensity churning in her stomach. When her tongue swiped against his bottom lip, he reacted with force. The kind she craved and he moved her underneath him, his hands parting her thighs.

When he pulled back, she bit his bottom lip harder than she should. He moaned, and she laughed, reaching to cover his mouth.

"Don't forget, Hannah's home tonight," she snickered, briefly holding her hand there.

She could actually see his green eyes darken with desire as he nodded. She removed her hands and he kissed them lightly, and when her leg slipped over his, he pulls hard on her thigh, guiding her to straddle him.

"I know," he said, his voice low. "But like she cares…"

His hands grabbed her hips hard, his fingers digging into the soft cotton pants she wore. When he tugged her down to him, he pulled her lip into his mouth and she moaned. He deepened the kiss, sucking on her tongue and her hips started rocking against his instinctively.

Ned groaned. "Oh, Katie." The way he sounded made her shudder against him; when her hips hit his this time, something in her jolts. She's barely even aware that the high pitched sounds she heard that was coming from her.

He grunted, pushing her away suddenly to lie on her back. His hands ran up her legs, pressing firmly against her through her pants. She's enthralled by the way he slipped his shirt off then, his pale skin gleaming in the light streaming in the window, too distracted to protest when he suddenly tugged her pants off. He swore again at the sight of her lace black panties.

"Of course, it would be so simple," he whispered humorlessly, his fingers tracing lines from her knees all the way to her hip bones.

"Ned," she whispered, touching his hand with hers.

All at once, his face softened. He sat back, his legs stretched out in front of him as he pulled his boxers down. "C'mere," he said.

She slipped her panties off and climbed back onto his lap; she moaned at the feel of his chest against hers, separated only by the thin fabric of her top. His hands found her hips again, pressing her into him. His greens eyes caught hers, dark in the moonlight. He held her stare, thrusting into her deliberately. She cried out softly as their lips met, and he thrust again. He was harder than she had ever felt him.

"Ned," she gasped, grasping his neck. She threw her head back, and he sucked at her pulse point, licking down to her collarbone. "Oh, God, right there."

Ned pressed a soft kiss above the neckline of her shirt. His hands left her hips as he continued to move against her, one hand pulling her top over her head. His hands slowly took in the feel of the skin of her back.

She let out a soft whimper, and he kissed her again. She rocked against him more earnestly now, chasing after something that coiled low in her stomach. His hands moved over her back, to knead her ass.

She was practically biting her tongue now not to scream as her head rested against his shoulder. Her rhythm was less consistent now, her legs locked around his hips. He could feel it when she came—her entire body stilled, a choked moan pressed against his skin. He was still painfully hard as he pulled out, and his breath caught in his throat when she softly kissed the skin above his heart.

"Your turn," she whispered and when she lifted her head their eyes locked, he licked his lips earnestly.

"Katie, I love you," he blurted out.

"I love you too," she said without thinking as she grasped him, sinking to take him into her mouth.

He closed his eyes and laughed harshly, fisting her hair in his hand. It wasn't long before he came, and she laid back against his chest.

Hours passed and Ned fell asleep, but Katie didn't. She was exhausted, but couldn't find a moment of rest.

She couldn't keep her mind off it. Off everything. Of every single worry that she had about her and Ned's relationship. Had he changed? Was he ready to settle down with one woman? With her? Would the distance make it easier?

It was then when she started to worry. When she thought about it. About taking a break. The first time she really, truly considered taking a break from Ned.

It had been hours since she'd rolled onto her side, but she felt the bed dip as he tossed onto his side. His hand was warm on her hips, pulling her to him so she was flush against his chest. And even though she was worried he deserved to know what she was feeling, she sunk into his arms anyway, smiling a little as he pressed a light kiss to her neck.

"Get some sleep, baby," he whispered softly. "We'll talk in the morning."

She nodded and pressed a kiss to his arm wrapped around her.

Neither said a word for the rest of the night.

* * *

It only got worse for them, all of it nearly coming to a head the following Sunday.

Katie had come home at her mother's request for a difficult spirit. After tromping around town with her mother all day, they were unable to learn anything new from her family. The only relative they were able to find was a sister, but she hadn't been much help.

After that the Clancy women went back to the house to come up with a new plan, hoping that the spirit would pay one of them a visit. It sadly didn't. Melinda did, however, want to pay Professor Payne a visit, but always had an excuse that got her out of it. Katie didn't mind though. She had always gone to see Payne for her mother. There was something that had happened before she was born. Her mother still hadn't gotten over it for some reason. Melinda always changed the subject when she brought it up.

It wasn't until she was traveling back to her parent's house from talking to the Payne when the ghost finally paid her a visit. Katie stared head on as she watched the girl her mother had described standing in the middle of the street. She knew the ghost had died in a car accident and that terrified her. She continued driving, going through the spirit and she heard a pop behind her.

She slowly pressed on the breaks and her car slid on the ice for a moment until she came to a dead stop on the side of the road. She jolted forward and held on tightly to the wheel. The adrenaline flooded her system like it's on an intravenous drip - right into her blood at full pelt. She thought her heart would explode and her eyes were wide and unblinking.

Once Katie was able to calm herself down, she got out to asses the damage of her car. She looked around first, sensing that someone was watching her. The paranoia crept dripped down her neck with the sweat beads. She didn't see anyone, only the empty road and the falling snow around her.

Damnit.

Where was the damn ghost?

"You know, I can't help you if you don't talk to me!" She yelled, frustrated with everything.

She didn't care who heard her. It was too late for anyone to care.

Why did she have to deal with this? Why did her car decide now was the right time do this to her, even if the ghost had something to do with it.

Once she looked at her tire and saw the way it slumped, the bottom of it ripped open. She knew she was screwed. The snow had bunched up around it and she couldn't get her jack in place.

Fuck.

She was going to have to call somebody to help her at eleven thirty at night.

The first person she thought about calling was Ned. She wanted to hug him and knew he would be able to help her. Usually, she had no trouble changing a tire, but the snow was going to make it a little difficult.

When Katie called him, she hadn't even realized she had forgotten to tell him she was in town. Ned was was pissed and hadn't even asked if she was okay before he hung up.

She yelled again and kicked her tire over and over until her foot hurt. That wasn't a good idea, but she didn't care.

When his headlights pulled up behind her, she got out of her car again, rubbing her gloved hands together. She watched as Ned climbed out his truck and slammed his door shut.

"What happened?" He cleared his throat as he walked toward her. She could smell the cigarette he'd smoked on the way over before he even got to her. Of course, he hadn't quit. Ned crouched to look at her tire. "Did you hit something?"

She chewed on her fingernail as she watched Ned flash his flashlight up against her car. "I don't really know," she whispered, shuffling toward him. The snow crunched under her feet, filling the silence. "One second I was driving and the next there was the ghost in the road and this happened."

"It doesn't look like there is any damage to the axle or anything. Just some to the exterior and the tire." He sighed and stood up. He tucked his flashlight in his coat pocket and ran a hand through his hair. "I should be able to get your spare tire on no problem once we clear the snow. Why couldn't you?"

"The snow made it difficult for me. It just kept sticking to my gloves," she muttered, looking away as she wiped away a fallen tear.

Why was he being so mean?

She knew she'd fucked up. She should've remembered to tell him that she was home, but she could've gotten hurt. She could've died.

Okay, she was overreacting a little with that, but still. He was being a jerk for no reason now.

"Hey, I'm sorry." He sighed and stood up, the snow crunching under his boots. "Are you okay?" He asked, his hands touching her cheeks. "I didn't mean to still be mad. I just wish you would've told me about coming home yesterday. I could've seen you last night."

She'd honestly just forgot to mention it. She had planned to go home that morning, but the ghost her mother needed help with was a bit more complicated. It was just for a ghost. She hadn't even thought about it.

"I'm sorry, it slipped my mind." She shook her head, wrapping her arms around him. He smelled different. It wasn't his usual cologne and it was overpowered by the cigarette smoke odor. "I'm so happy you still came."

"Why wouldn't I?" He asked, pulling back from the embrace. "Is something wrong between us Katie? First, you don't tell me about coming home and now you think I would've left you out here?"

"We'll finish talking about this and you smoking again later, Ned. Can we just put my damn car back together?" She muttered, walking away to her trunk, opening it with her keys and pulling up her spare tire from the back of the trunk.

Ned didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything. He just changed the tire in silence like she'd asked him to. Once it was done, he put away the jack and sighed. "There, your car is put back together. Can we talk now?" He slammed the trunk closed

"About what?" She asked, throwing her hands up. "Want to talk about the cigarettes?"

"I started smoking again because I'm stressed. Why are you being so distant?" He asked, turning back to look at her. "You act like I'm not there half the time!"

"And I'm just fucking busy, Ned. My mind is focused on a million different things." She threw back at him, her hand running through her hair.

"Everything but me, I guess." He turned away then, the snow crunching under his boot.

"Ned, wait." She marched after him, grabbing hold of his hand. "I didn't mean it like that. There isn't a day where I don't think about you."

"It's hard to believe that right now, Katie," he muttered and looked down at her hand as she held his hand until he let go of hers and walked away. "I'll see you later. Drive careful."

She bit her tongue from saying anything more to him and got back into her car. It started up fine and she drove away slowly from the curb. When she noticed he was following her home to make sure everything went good, she thought it would warm her heart. But it didn't make her feel any better.

Katie had put herself into a bad mood by the time she pulled up at her parent's house. She grabbed her purse and keys from the ignition and got out, slamming the door closed. "So are you coming inside?" She turned to look at him as he parked his truck and got out. "Everyone is sleeping… well except my mom."

"Can't. I signed on for a night patrol," he muttered, shaking his head. He almost looked sad as he walked toward her. Almost. "I didn't know you were coming into town. I suppose I-"

"Don't worry about it, Ned," she shook her head and patted his shoulder as he stood in front of her. "And in case you were wondering, I only came home because my mom pulled the ghost emergency card. I couldn't say no. I was so busy I forgot to mention it."

He sighed and leaned against her car. "You still should've called me," he looked over at her and she nodded slowly. She thought he was going to kiss her goodnight. She kind of wanted him to even though she was still mad, but he pushed off the car and started to walk away. "We texted this morning. You never said a word. It just doesn't make any sense Katie."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. She couldn't believe that he was still on this topic. "I was preoccupied and it was sixty thirty in the morning. I was barely awake. You're such a jackass," she snapped and stormed up the driveway and into the house. "I can't believe you."

"Katie, I'm sorry!" Ned said and then she slammed the front door of her parent's house.

It's just her hormones, she told herself. She'd switched her birth control last week. She locked the front door and kicked off her boots. She ripped off her coat and hung it up.

She should've just called her dad to help. It didn't matter if he was working. He would've figured it out and he would've hugged her before he even looked at her damn car.

Just then, her mom popped her head down the stairs. "Katie? What's wrong?" Melinda asked. "Did something happen?"

"Hey, mom. It's nothing," she sighed, pulling her hat off. "Ned was just a total dick to me. For almost no reason."

Melinda chuckled from the stairs and she came down and rounded the banister. "No filter, I'm glad you've learned." She wrapped her arm around her. "What happened, well besides your car trouble..."

"Well, it was a little more than car trouble." Her mom's face was already changing as they walked into the kitchen. "I just didn't want to worry you until I got home."

"Out with it already," her mom waved her off, going about to make tea.

"When I driving home from visiting Professor Payne, the ghost was in the road. I drove through her and my tire blew out," she sighed, sitting down on the stool as her mom set the kettle on the stove. "Usually I'd have no trouble changing it but the snow made it difficult. I called Ned and all he did was yell at me because he didn't know I was in town. I forgot to tell him."

Her mom, being the smothering-mother she was, came over immediately and wrapped her arms around her. "You okay baby?" She asked and pressed several kisses to her face.

Katie usually wasn't one to let her mother smother her, for long, but she wanted every moment of it right now. "Yeah, I am now." She sighed and hugged her tighter. "I get why he's mad, but I just wanted him to make me feel better and he didn't. He just yelled at me and when I invited him in, he got all snippy about taking a patrol tonight because he didn't know I was in town. It just made me feel worse."

"I'm sorry, bug. That totally sucks. Ned was a total jerk for no reason. It doesn't matter what happened, he shouldn't treat you like that." Her mom released her a little, but only enough to get a good look at her and press another kiss to her forehead. "Do you want me to have a talk with your dad? I'm sure he'll have a chat with Ned."

She shook her head slowly. "I usually would take you up on that, but I think it should be me talking to Ned. Not dad," she whispered, looking down at her hands as the kettle began to steam. "I'm worried things aren't going to get any better." She took another breath in, and her mom didn't respond. It was like Melinda was waiting for her daughter to tell her something more. The real something that she had been thinking about for the last week.

"I know there is something else," her mom finally said, taking the kettle off the stove and pouring the hot water into the waiting coffee mugs on the counter.

She shook her head, unable to talk anymore. Her tears threatened to spill, but she drew strength from closing her eyes and taking in a slow breath. She couldn't start crying. She knew she wouldn't be able to stop.

"You know you can talk to me about anything, right Katie?" Her mother's voice was closer now and she turned her head over to the left to open her eyes to see her standing right there, beside her with the cup of tea held out to her.

She nodded. "I know," she took the cup and set it down on the island.

"Did something else happen? Did Ned-" Her mom didn't know quite how to ask, but Katie stopped her before she could.

Ned would never cheat on her. She knew that. She did. "No," she shook her head. "He didn't do anything like that. I swear." She slumped down, setting her head on the counter. "It's just the distance, mom. It's killing us. I have been thinking about asking Ned to take a break…"

"You know what a break will fully entail… right, Katie?" Her mom rested her hand on her cheek, looking at her seriously.

She nodded slowly. As a test, she tried to imagine Ned balls deep in some random stranger. She nearly had a rage blackout. She was so screwed.

What was she going to do?


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Things continue to be troubling for Katie and Ned, but things will get better. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Later that night, Katie laid in bed. Although her talk with her mom helped and calmed her down, when she came down into the basement she couldn't hold back the tears. She'd cried herself into a dreamless sleep until she eventually woke up.

Blicking, she looked over at the clock. It was nearly two in the morning. Great. She tossed back and forth, kicking the blankets from herself several times.

She couldn't sleep. Not when Ned was on her mind. Not when they'd fought like that.

It may have been four in the morning now, but she called him. He would be getting off his patrol soon. When Ned answered, Katie didn't want to be the first one to speak. It was almost a whole minute of quiet before her boyfriend spoke.

"Are you still mad at me?" Ned asked.

"I'm not that mad at you," she told him, but it's not very convincing. "I love you, but Ned, we aren't working right now."

He sighed on the other end. "How can you say that?" He whispered. "I'm trying, Katie. You aren't."

"I can say it because it's the truth. Don't shove this off on me Ned. Living three hundred miles away from each other is going to kill our relationship if we don't do something," she explained, feeling her tears roll down her cheeks.

"Don't," he said, angrily. "You can spare me the clichés, Katie. If you want to throw us away-"

"Throw us away?" she asked, incredulous. "You think I want to do that? I just wanted to talk to you and think things through. I love you, but I don't know if I can be at the end of your anger when I forget to tell you I came home." She wasn't holding anything back. He deserved to hear everything she'd been holding back, for her to lay it on the table. "It was a simple mistake, Ned. I didn't deserve to be treated like that when you came to help me with my car. You acted like you didn't even care about how scared I was. I could've slid out way worse than I did."

"Katie, I'm sorry about that. I really am." He sighed on the other end. She could hear the rustling of his keys and his truck turning on. He must be off. "I should've made sure you were okay… I know that it could've been worse. Do you have to keep reminding me?"

"Stop, okay! I don't want to play this blame game. I don't want us to yell at each other." She sat up in bed, wiping away her tears. She knew that if she didn't stop herself soon that she was going to let the entire dam spill. "Can we talk about this in person before I go back to the city tomorrow? I heard your truck turn on..." She didn't want him to know how much his words hurt her, so she gritted her teeth and tried now to let him hear her cry. "I need to see you, Ned."

"You're right, Katie." He said softly. He sighed, "I'm so sorry. I-I just…I don't want to lose you. I'll do whatever you need so we can fix this. I don't work tomorrow. I'm already on my way to your parent's house. We can fix this."

"I know," she whispered, more tears rolling down her cheeks. She had to get those out before he got here. She didn't want to cry in front of him. She wasn't ready for that. Not really. "I want to fix us too. I love you. Drive careful."

"I will. I love you too. So much Katie." He said, hanging up.

* * *

Katie didn't even hear him come in. She was in between the state of sleeping and trying to fall asleep, her crying having taken a lot out of her. But when the bed dipped she woke up, just in time to feel Ned press a kiss to the back of her neck, brushing her hair over her shoulder.

"Katie," he whispered, running his hand down her side and over the curve of her hip. "Are you awake?"

She turned around as his arm rested on her waist. He saw the puffiness in her eyes even in the darkness. His hand cupped her cheek. He couldn't look at her in the eye.

"You've been crying," he said it so quietly she hardly heard him. "I'm so sorry. I hate myself for making you feel like this."

He always hated himself. Every single time. This was how it's always been with him. He never realized how much his words hurt her until after he'd already said them.

She curled up against his side, a tiny part of her acknowledging that she was just ignoring the inevitable conversation that she'd invited him over to have. She watched him carefully for a moment, quietly observing him. He was her boyfriend, shouldn't it be easy to talk to him? He meant everything to her and had for a while.

She felt comfortable with him. She trusted him.

"I was just mad that I couldn't see you. I'm sorry for taking that out on you when you needed me," he sighed, shaking his head. She could tell he was being genuine with her. She really could. "It's just we hardly ever see each other anymore."

"But you are seeing me now," she whispered. she noticed he was studying her before their lips touched as he leaned in closer.

He pulled back at the last moment. "I am," he whispered, his fingertips brushed her hair out of the frame of her face. "You're beautiful." Her face flushed. It was so hard to imagine Ned as her boyfriend sometimes. He was always out of her reach. "You are, Katie," his hands ran through her hair.

It was relaxing, her eyes fluttered closed. His lips pressed against her lips first, and her hand rose to touch his face immediately. They kissed languidly and their tongues mingled together before his mouth moved to her jaw.

"This week has been hell," she whispered, her fingers running up his neck and through his hair.

"I'm glad I could help you feel better," he chuckled, nibbling with his teeth on her neck.

"Mmm, Ned, you know I could never forget you right?" She asked, remembering his words earlier. He didn't believe her. He didn't believe that she would never forget him. That she thought about him every single day.

"I know," he whispered, lifting his head to look at her. "It's just hard."

She leaned forward to close the small distance between them, turning to press herself against his side. Very carefully, she moved her hand over to his chest, resting her palm against his rapidly beating heart as their lips broke. "This isn't going to fix us," she whispered.

"I know," he nodded quickly, his tongue darting out to wet his lips. She slid her palm up, and then moved it back down, marveling at how solid he felt. His arm snaked around her to settle on her hip, and she could swear his touch was burning her through the thin material of her leggings.

How was it possible to be so aroused by his thumb rubbing back and forth against her hip bone? Katie moved her other hand from her side to his shoulder, and gently straddled his lap. "You know I could never forget about you, ever," she repeated quietly as her hands explored his chest and arms.

Ned had dropped his hands when she moved, and he hadn't made another attempt to touch her again. She was thankful for that, though, because now she was free from anything distracting her as she focused on him.

His shirt was so soft under her hands, but the feel of him beneath the material was all her senses cared about. Her fingers trailed over the hard ridges of his upper body, and her eyes stayed fixated on their path as she moved down to his stomach and then back up to his sternum, rubbing the heels of her palms against his muscles along the way.

He sighed softly in contentment, and his head fell back against the pillows. She bit her lip, contemplating her next move, and then she traced the soft skin of his now exposed throat with feather-light touches. Feeling emboldened by his response so far, she allowed her fingers to dip below the collar of his shirt, and her nails scratched at the light chest hair she found there. But she was no longer content to take her time, so she brought her hands up to his hair and threaded her fingers through his thick waves.

His eyes fell shut for a moment before he forced them back open, and then they stared at each other with a shy, shared smile. He had his fingers skimming the length of her hair, and she shifted in his lap, smiling when she felt him hard against the back of her thigh.

"Take off your shirt?" she implored, bunching the fabric in her fists.

He nodded, then leaned forward so he could pull it over his head. Suddenly she needed more, more, more. She followed the same path with her hands as she had when he was clothed, but this time he mirrored her movements, his own palms running over her curves, though he still shied away from actually cupping her.

He was such a tease, she thought in frustration. The feel of his fingers barely grazing the undersides of her breasts was the worst, so she just peeled the whole shirt off instead.

Still, his hands only settled on her hips as he inhaled sharply. She was about to whip off her tank top to bare herself completely, but her hands froze at the hem. She tentatively placed her arms around his neck, her hands in his hair once again, and she slowly rocked back, licking her lips when she felt him still hard.

That earlier hunger was quickly returning, and she pinned him with a stare as she swiveled her hips again, and then again. He closed his eyes, grunting lightly as she moved, and the sound was everything she wanted to hear.

Especially after tonight.

For some reason, Ned stopped and pushed her hands away. "I think you're right, Katie. We have to figure out how to handle us before we do this."

"I don't want to handle anything," she sighed, reaching for him again.

He wanted her, of course-desperately, and every second of the day, especially now-but they both knew this wasn't solving anything. It was only stalling the inevitable big fight in the end. He took another second to enjoy the feel of her lips against him before he pulled back.

This time she rolled her eyes. "I can't talk about it, Ned. I can't think about it. Why can't you just do this for me?" Her voice was filled with anger now, and she shoved her hands against his chest, hard.

He took her by the arms and pushed her against the bed, harder than he intended to, successfully pinning her down. "Why is it always about what you want?" He bit out.

She was glaring, her eyes flashing anger at him. He could feel his face growing hotter, and God, he still wanted her.

What was wrong with him?

This wasn't what they needed to be doing. This wasn't going to solve anything. It was only going to cause more trouble for them.

He crushed her mouth with his slowly, passionately, taking her tongue into his mouth slowly. She moaned so loud he thought he might've hurt her-until her hands grabbed his hips and roughly pulled them against hers, her moans grew louder still.

"We aren't having sex, Katie," he whispered, pulling back. Surprise flitted over her face, but her hands move up to his face. He let her, licking his lips. "It's not going to help us."

She nodded, and slowly slid her hands around his neck. "Okay, Ned," she whispered over her shoulder. "I'm sorry that I forgot to tell you I was home."

"I'm sorry for being angry," he sighed. "I had yesterday and today off, but I wanted to try and reach overtime this month for Christmas so I took on the extra shift today. I want to get you something really nice."

"Ned," she laughed, squeezing his shoulders as she looked up at him. "You don't have to."

Their lips met again as they both laughed this time. He was going to forever spoil her in every way he could. She was soft underneath him and his dream girl. He worshiped her with his lips and his hands, running them over her entire body. She sighed in pleasure below him, smack their lips together again.

"Let's go to sleep," he whispered, rubbing his thumb against her cheek.

"Will you stay?" She asked.

"Of course," he said and they moved around the bed to get comfortable, the blanket snug around them.

When they woke in the morning, her head was on his chest, the blanket wrapped tightly around him. Her lips pressed delicately kissed to the soft, pliable skin of Ned's chest.

"I love you," she whispered.

He smiled sleepily at her, running his hand up her back and wrapping around her. "I love you too," he said, leaning down to kiss her forehead.

* * *

After the ghost crossed over that afternoon, finally, Katie began to pack her bags. There was a knock on the wall as Ned came down the stairs into the basement.

"You headed out already?" He asked, his face falling a bit.

He had just run home to help his mom load the groceries up when Delia had called him.

"Yeah, mom and I crossed the ghost over while you were gone." She explained, shrugging. "Han and I both have an early class. She tagged along to check on her family cat since her parents are out of the country again." She explained, zipping her duffle closed as she walked to meet Ned.

He sighed, nodding. She could tell he understood, but he still wished she'd stay a little longer. "What if I drove you in tomorrow morning and Hannah drives your car in?" He suggested, walking toward her.

"Ned, that's too early. We'd have to go at like four in the morning," she sighed, biting her lip. She didn't know what else to say. She knew they both didn't want to get up that early, especially not on a Monday morning. "Maybe next time, babe."

She went back to gather laptop case from the bed and tuck it into her bag before she zipped it closed.

"It's always next time," he sighed, shaking his head. "When will it be this time?"

"Ned, I don't want to fight about anything. Who knows the next time I'll be able to see you," she whispered, grabbing her duffle from the bed and phone from the side table. Her purse was last on her list to grab. "Please Ned, I don't want to leave things like this."

"You'll be back for Christmas right?" He asked, grabbing her purse for her to lighten her load.

"Yes, of course." She whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck. "It'll just be you and me in your room, all alone together..." She hummed happily, conjuring an imagine her head that she knew he was thinking of too. "We'll be in bed, naked... together... okay? Just keep that in mind for the next two and a half weeks."

"Okay," he smiled and started to nudge her duffle off her shoulder. "Let me get this bag from you. You can carry your purse. I'll help you load up the car."

She reluctantly switched bags with him and settled her satchel purse around her. "Thank you." She wrapped her arm through his as they walked up the stairs.

The evening was in full swing as they made their way upstairs. Lana was running amuck, the last of her energy from eating leftover Halloween candy. Her father was starting dinner in a big pot, and it smelt delicious. She wasn't sure what it was, but it would be a good meal for sure.

"Look, Lana, Katie's getting ready to go back to the city," Jim called out, stirring something in the pot. It was most likely soup. "Hey, Ned! Didn't see you come in."

"Hey, Jim! Yeah, Mel let me in on her way upstairs to wake Lana up from her nap I think." Ned kept walking as Katie stopped, wanting to get her bags in the car and it started so it would be warm for her. "Hey, can I get your keys from you?"

Katie tossed them his way as she pulled her hat and gloves out her purse.

"Sissy, don't go!" The two-year-old squealed and ran to her, hugging her legs tightly.

"Oh, Lana," she rubbed her head and smiled at her littlest sister. Her bright blue eyes blinked at her as she pouted. "I'll miss you so much, but I'll be home for Christmas Eve okay?"

"Okay," the little girl hugged her tightly as Katie crouched down to kiss her cheek. "I love you, sissy."

"Love you too, little monkey," she whispered in her ear, winking at her as she stood up.

"Don't forget about me, Katiebug," her dad said, coming around the island to hug her. His arms were wide open, there was no way she could even resist her dad's hugs. They were the best. Second to her mom's and maybe Ned's. Ned's hugs had always been better than anyone's because he was Ned. He'd always been special to her. "You better drive careful. It's snowing and the interstate can get crazy this time of year."

"I always drive careful, dad." She smiled, hugging him tightly. She kissed his cheek as they parted. She always loved that he wore sweaters this time of year, especially his holiday ones that her mom would gift him every year. It made him even warmer and cuddlier than usual. He gave the best hugs too. "You worry too much about me. You and mom both."

"We worry just enough," her mother's voice came like a shot in the dark and she turned around to see her holding Lana in the doorway. She kissed the raven toddler's cheek. "Now Lana, go clean up your toys before dinner." Melinda set her on her two feet and the girl scurried off as the mother hugged Katie. "You aren't staying for dinner Katie? I thought that was the plan."

"Yeah, well Hannah and I want to miss the rush hour traffic," she explained, kissing her cheek. "It's almost six now, so we'll be getting into the city around eight-thirty. If we waited any longer we'd hit the late-night Broadway traffic. Plus Brandon is off from the firehouse at nine."

"Katie's right," Jim said, going back to the pot to stir it. "She would be stuck waiting for another hour in traffic if she left any later."

"Yeah, I guess." Her mother sighed, pulling back. She kept hold of her hands, squeezing them. "I just wish we could've had some us time."

"We were preoccupied," she shrugged. "Christmas is right around the corner."

"You'll be in town all month, right?" Her mother asked.

"Yep!" She winked and smiled at her. "I'm not sure if I'm bunking with Ned or bunking here."

"You can always come in and out if you like. You still have your key right?" Her mother asked her.

"Of course. I know," she said, going toward the door to grab her coat as it neared six. She didn't want to leave off schedule. It was never good to start like this. "Are Mack and Aaron here?"

"Mack is in the living room and Aaron is at basketball practice. He doesn't get home until seven." Her mother explained, following her into the foyer. "Mackenzie, your sister's leaving. Come and say goodbye."

Katie hugged her mom again, lingering for a moment, knowing it would be another two and a half weeks until she was home again. "I'll miss you so much," she whispered. "I'll call you when I get to the apartment. As soon as I park."

"Good, I was gonna ask you to anyway." Melinda smiled, running her fingers through her daughter's long hair. "You'll drive careful right? You're driving, not Hannah?"

"Yes, I'm driving, mom. Don't worry, Hannah would never drive in the snow if I was with. I'm just a better driver." She reassured her as she grabbed her jacket off the coat hanger. Ned came back inside just then and startled them both. "Oh, hi. Did you start my car?"

"Yep," he shook the snow out of his hair. "All started. Hey, Mel."

"Hey, Ned." The mother smiled, going toward the living room to fetch the middle Clancy child. "Mackenzie Andrea, are you deaf! Katie is on a time schedule. Come and say goodbye to your sister."

Katie almost cherished the moment alone with him as her mother left her with Ned in the front entryway.

"Thank you for coming over last night," she touched his cold, red cheeks with her warm hands before she pulled on her jacket. He could tell she wanted to kiss him. It was the way she looked at his lips, sucking her own bottom one in her mouth as she bit in. "I'm so glad we got to see each other... even if it was only for a little while."

"Me too," he whispered, leaning in to seal their lips together.

She hummed her approval as the floorboards squeaked, telling them both her mother and little sister were coming. She slowly lowered to the flat of her feet, and smiled, licking her lips as she turned toward Mackenzie who had come in from the living room. "Hey you, I'll miss you the most." She engulfed the small blonde in a hug.

"Good because I miss you so much," the nine-year-old hugged her tightly.

"I'll be back Christmas Eve that's not too far away. Aaron and Lana will keep you company until then," She reminded her, rubbing her back.

"I guess, but they aren't you," Mackenzie sighed. "Love you, Katie."

"I love you too, nerd." She laughed, fist-bumping her little sister before hugging her mom again. "I love you too, mom."

"Lots of love going around I see," Melinda chuckled and kissed her cheek. She leaned in to whisper to her this time. "Glad to see you and Ned are doing a little better."

She nodded, squeezing her. "I'll talk to you later," she smiled. "Lots has happened."

"I can tell," Melinda whispered, pressing another kiss to her cheek as they pulled back. "But we'll talk about all that later. Don't forget."

"I won't," she smiled, turning to leave with Ned. "Give my love to Aaron."

"Wait, I want another hug." Her dad came in, his arm around her mother's shoulder.

"Of course," she hugged Jim tightly, feeling him kiss her cheek. "I love you, daddy."

"Love you too, bug. Drive careful. Give Hannah my love." Her dad said, squeezing her tightly as they pulled back, he winked and squeezed her cheek.

"I will. Keep mom sane," she reminded him, laughing.

"Hey!" Melinda laughed, looking at them both. "Don't gang up on me."

"Love you! See you all in two weeks," Katie called, and could only laugh at her mother's words as she walked back toward Ned who wrapped his arm around her as he waved goodbye to everyone.

He pulled the door closed behind them and led her toward her car. "What was that with your mom?" He asked, his arm around her to make sure she doesn't fall if she slipped on any ice.

"What do you mean?" She asked, looking up at him.

"The whole you'll talk about that later thing?" He asked. "Before your dad came in.."

"Oh, she was just worried. I came home pretty mad last night," she explained offhandedly, shrugging. "But things are good between us right?"

He nodded slowly, smiling at her. "I think I got next weekend off. Maybe I can drive to the city and we can get a hotel and everything since Hannah and Brandon will be having that party at the apartment."

"Really?" She smiled at him widely, grasping his arm excitedly. "That would be really fun. I would skip out on clean up duty too."

"Like I said, I think I have it off. I may not," he shrugged, kissing her cheek. "But if not, we'll figure something out. I don't want to wait for this whole almost three weeks without seeing you."

"Okay," she nodded, leaning in to kiss his lips this time. "That sounds good. I'll text you when I'm home."

He leaned her up against her car, their lips parting for just a moment. "How much time do you think we have before Hannah comes across the street."

"Probably five minutes," she whispered, licking her lips.

"Good," he nodded. "I need five more minutes with you."

He leaned in to capture her lips but she pulled back, locking her eyes with his. "How come its always kissing with you?" She laughed.

He answered her with a kiss, his tongue sliding against hers as they shared a single breath. Her mouth opened wider, inviting him in further. She pulled on the collar of his shirt as he thrust up against her. She was offering up everything and he greedily wanted it all. His lips trailed down her neck and collarbone, urged on as she moaned and fisted his hair.

She didn't want to stop. She loved the way his lips felt against her skin, the way he he held onto her so close to him. "We're outside my parent's house," she reminded him, tapping his shoulder. She bit back another moan as he sucked on her skin, leaving a hickey. "We should slow down."

He chuckled against her skin, licking up her neck. "Okay," he whispered, lifting his face to hers. "We can slow down."

"I didn't know how much longer I could say no and not bang you in the backseat before Hannah comes over," she laughed, smiling brightly at him.

"Ugh, don't turn me on." He groaned, stepping back.

She winked and leaned up to kiss him again, their tongues moving together.

"Ugh, please don't french in front of me." Hannah gave a signal of her presence and their lips parted.

"I'll talk to you soon," she smiled against his lips and kissed him once more before patting his chest as she pulled back. "Love you."

"Love you too," he said contently.

She hugged him one more time and they each squeezed lightly before she got into her car. He tapped to top of her car and waved them off on his way to his truck.

"You love him, don't you?" Hannah asked as she flipped through the radio stations and Katie backed out of the driveway.

"I always have, Han," she nearly choked on her indignant laughter. "And you couldn't have come another five minutes later?"

Hannah shrugged and settled on 96.1 Kiss as the last chorus for the latest pop hit chimed on. "Aw, we missed it," Hannah said more to herself than to Katie, then turned the dial again to the next pop station. The same song was just starting and Hannah relaxed back in the seat, satisfied. "And I'm sorry. You two looked done in the window when I peeked."

Katie's hands tightened on the steering wheel. "I really love him, Han," she declared. "Like I think I'm gonna have to move back to Grandview."

She doesn't have to see her best friend to know Hannah is staring at her incredulously. "Is he worth leaving NYU and not getting your degree there?"

"Rockland is a great school too," she pointed out, turning onto the main road that would lead them to the highway. "Plus I'd be home and close to family. What if he's the one?"

"So what Katie, NYU has been your dream since elementary school. Are you ready to give that up for some man? Really?" Hannah scoffed, shaking her head. "I know that you wouldn't give that up if you didn't think he was worth it, but still. Is Ned Banks worth all of that hard work?"

"That changes nothing. It's not like I would be giving up school. I'm just transferring to Rockland. I've loved Ned since middle school!" She tapped her fingertips on the steering wheel. "This distance is going to kill us, Han. It really is."

"Well, I think you should probably do something about it then." Hannah said, undeterred. "You know that I know how much Ned means to you more than anyone, Katie. I'd just be sure you want to leave NYU otherwise you'll just hate yourself for it one day."

Katie said nothing as her mind ran a million different ways with all of that information, so Hannah took the opportunity to sing along with the radio to fill the silence.


	4. Chapter 4

When Katie noticed some girl tagged Ned in a new Facebook photo, she was beyond irritated. When she clicked on the photo and saw a woman detective she didn't recognize and Ned's smiling face as they stood side by side at the holiday party.

Maybe she should've gone to the stupid party instead of pulling an all-nighter to write her last midterm paper for Psychology II.

Ugh, she doesn't hate him. Not even a little. She kind of hated the girl though. Why didn't she get to hang out with her boyfriend?

Plus everyone and her own mother were reading that god-awful new erotica tripe. It's said to be the next Fifty Shades of Grey, but worse. Literally. And when she had found a copy of the book in her mother's bag when she'd gone home last weekend, she didn't know if she would ever look her in the eye again. She just knew her mother would get some dirty idea from it. She just did.

But there was a comforting realization that came with the said book too. Because seeing that damn cover all over the place kind of just threw sex out there. Sex was a fact of life. It's universal. If it's universal, there's really no reason to feel so embarrassed by it anymore.

And Katie was a grown-ass woman. She's now old enough to get tattoos or buy lottery tickets and vote in this year's presidential election. Which she did.

She's old enough for sex. She had sex a lot of the time when she was actually with Ned. But lately, things had been going downhill in that department especially since they didn't see each other that often. She was on the verge of finally going into the sex shop she drove passed on her way to campus.

On the other hand, Katie knew she needed to take the initiative and tell Ned that she was upset he hadn't come down and gotten a hotel room like they'd talked about doing when she was back in Grandview. Instead, she'd had to help Hannah clean up after the alcohol tasting party her and Brandon threw. Which involved putting her hand in someone else's vomit.

Needless to say, Katie was never letting Hannah throw another party ever again and she needed to tell Ned about their intimacy issue before she killed someone.

It could even be nice, she thought.

If she's lucky, she could even convince Hannah and Brandon to go back to Grandview early since they'd both finished finals early. She could even make dinner but knew she would probably just end up ordering pizza.

He'd probably laugh her off anyway, she thought. Or at least insist that they wait for the perfect, most romantic moment. A guy who's such a sap for Jim and Pam probably wouldn't throw her down right there on the kitchen table, right?

But just in case, on her way to her usual Sunday morning shift at the diner, she called him.

"Hey Ned, you up?" She asked.

"Hey Katie, what's up." His sleepy voice came through her stereo system as she waited for her car to warm up in her parking spot. It was followed by a yawn and a groan.

He was so hungover from the party from last night.

She laughed in his misery, just a little. "I was just waiting on my car to warm up and was thinking about you," she said softly, tapping her hands on the wheel. "I just wanted to call and see how your hangover was from the party last night."

"So you're calling to gloat," he muttered sleepily. "I see."

"Only a little, baby." She laughed, a little, but then cut it off to make him feel better. "I just wish you would've come to see me instead."

"You know it wasn't my choice not to come to see you." He sighed, his voice was muffled by something. Probably his pillow. "It was my truck, considering the starter went out."

"Yeah, I know, but it's fixed now, right?" She'd forgotten about that. The universe actually hated her and never wanted her to be satisfied. "But that was on my mind..." He hummed in reply, still waking up. "And I think you should sober up and come to see me if you can. It's Sunday and you don't work tomorrow, and I have needs."

"You have needs," he repeated, laughing a little. "I know that, Katie. My truck is fixed."

"That didn't come out right," she bit her lip, sighing. "What I'm saying is you should drive to see me and we should have sex. Hot, dirty sex. All over the place."

His laugh was enough to get her to clear her mind and laugh with him. "Okay, I'll sober up and come to see you. You have needs and I will fulfill them. I promise," he snickered. "You're quite the seductress, you know."

"Thanks," she shook her head, her grin wide. Maybe they would be okay. "I'll order pizza. Sound good?"

"Sounds like a dream," he said. "I'm going back to bed for another hour or two. I love you."

"I love you too," she rolled her eyes as he hung up.

Her shift was okay. It was dead at first, so she'd read old Cosmo magazines. The anticipation of waiting for Ned was crazy. She found herself flipping through most of the first and second magazine.

Katie and Ned may have just seen each other the weekend before but were only alone together for a short time. They did make use of it. Even if they were fighting too. They still kind of were, but at the same time, they weren't. Things were okay, for now.

To take her mind off everything she started reading an article titled 41 Ways to Drive Him Crazy in Bed and looked anxiously over the top of the magazine as she slid further down in her seat, silently praying anyone she was working with assumed she was just looking over the tips on fashion finds.

* * *

When Katie got off from the diner, she texted Ned. He called her as she got into her car, she'd told him. He just was getting into the city, taking an exit off the freeway. He had perfect timing.

Ned grinned to himself as he took the familiar route to her apartment. Katie told him that she had been able to convince Hannah to leave for Grandview a day early. That made things even better.

"I'll see you when I get there okay? Traffic is slowing down and I should keep my attention on the road," he explained. "I love you."

"Love you too, Ned. I can't wait to see you," she said on the other end.

When he knocked on the door, she'd just finished applying her lipstick. The only reason he could tell was because she rubbed her lips together as she opened the door and let him in, smiling at him widely.

"Hey, how was the drive?" She asked, closing and locking the door behind him. "I forgot to ask on the phone."

He immediately took notice of the new dress she'd decided to wear. It was red. One with a particularly low, scoop neckline. It wasn't very long, and he found himself gulping at the sight of her bare legs, and then her cleavage.

When was the last time she'd worn a dress, like this, without tights? Had he ever seen her in this dress?

"It was fine, as well as could be expected. Is this a new dress?" His eyes flitted up to hers, his fingers touching the hem of the dress. It came short, just above her knee. "I don't think I've ever seen you wear it."

"It didn't fit Hannah right, so she gave it to me. Do you like it?" She shrugged, smiling at him.

He couldn't find the right words. He loved it, but those weren't the right words either. He just nodded dumbly instead, and she turned around to lead him to the table. The skirt twirled with her, giving him a view of her ass, which told him that she wasn't wearing any panties at all.

That was enough clues for him to shrug his jacket off and follow her quickly. He could see what kind of game she was playing here. Before she had the chance to open the pizza box, he grabbed hold of her hand and tugged her toward him. She seemed almost surprised but then smiled as he leaned in to kiss her like she was so happy he was doing this before anything else.

The kiss was brief, and he pulled back with a slight nibble to her bottom lip. "You drive me crazy," he moaned, shaking his head.

She blushed and pressed their lips together again. His eyes closed, momentarily and he was lost in the warmth of her mouth until they pulled away from each other slowly. "I knew I would," she whispered, her hand running up his chest. "And just so you know, I have like zero expectations for what happens tonight."

"So you don't have any expectations?" He almost felt hurt. He'd been thinking of how he wanted to take her, considering she wanted him to pretty bad. Enough to call him.

"Oh no, I didn't mean it like that." She held onto his hand now and pulled back a little to look at him. "I was thinking about you during my whole work shift," she blushed a little, biting her lip. "I just meant we didn't have to do anything right away. I just wanted to mess with you a little."

He could tell she was about to ask how they should proceed, but she stopped talking to him. Instead, she was looking up at him, just looking. Did she want him to say something or was she going to?

He also realized she was too stuck in her mind to say anything, so he kissed her instead, and then whispered, "Stop thinking so much."

"It's hard to just turn off thoughts," she admitted.

He grinned at her as he pulled her back toward the bedroom. "Challenge accepted."

* * *

Katie pushed the door open and felt her way to her bed to flip on the bedside table lamp. When she looked back at Ned, she saw that he had shut the door and was already pulling his shirt open and his undershirt off.

"Oh," she breathed, gawking at the expanse of taut muscles in his abdomen and chest, then she shook her head to spur herself into action.

She weakly struggled to remove her dress quickly while Ned toed off his shoes and socks, then crossed to her in two strides, fisting her dress in his hands to quickly enough tug it over her head.

He dipped his head to hers to capture her mouth, his tongue plying hers insistently as his hands ran over her bare skin and she wrapped her arms around his neck, she stood on her toes to gain better access to his mouth.

After a moment, he pulled back, his hands tangled in her hair and grasping her neck. "Do you wanna keep the lights on?" he asked quietly, his eyes holding her gaze for a moment. "I know we usually turn them off."

She blinked, and her brow creased slightly. "No...I mean, yeah, that's fine," she replied hesitantly.

He leaned down to kiss her again as his fingers grappled with the clasp of her bra, and then she felt the tension of the contraption release. She dropped her arms from his shoulders so he could slide the bra off, licking her lips self-consciously once her breasts were exposed to his hungry gaze.

Okay, maybe she should have left the light off...

But he still didn't touch her breasts, instead of maneuvering her to her bed and laying her down. They moved together until her head was on the pillow, and he was positioned between her legs, his body stretched out on top of hers. He slanted his mouth over hers again, and she welcomed his tongue readily, her hands pawing at his back.

Finally, he covered one of her breasts with his hand, and she sighed into his mouth; she felt him smile as he began to knead her breast, rolling her nipple under his palm. He spent an inordinate amount of time just massaging her breasts, pulling and tweaking her nipples with his fingers until she was desperate for him to just use his mouth already.

Withdrawing her tongue from his mouth, she caught his bottom lip between her teeth and bit down, gently but urgently. He grunted, and she released his lip to let him slide down her body. He fluttered kisses along her neck and breast until his lips wrapped around her nipple. Ned pulled the hardened bud into the wet suction of his mouth, and she dipped her head back with a soft, satisfied moan.

Oh, that was good—and when he nipped it between his teeth, even better. God, she loved him.

Wet heat pooled between her thighs at an increasing rate, and her body ached, demanding relief. Katie dug her fingers into his back muscles and unconsciously began thrusting up into him, angling her pelvis to rub against him.

His ministrations to her breasts stopped abruptly, the fading warmth of his hand and mouth leaving her feeling cold as he pinned her hips to the bed to stop her thrusts. "Don't," he ordered huskily, laughing when she shot him a confused scowl. "Just let yourself get wet. I want you dripping."

"Ned," she moaned. "I don't know if I can…"

His laugh then shocked her, an electric pulse of desire shooting down her spine to swell at her core. She dropped her head back to the pillow with a strangled sound.

He sat up then, his fingers skimming her hips as he hooked them in the sides of her underwear. "Actually, I'm gonna go ahead and take these off," he said.

She lifted her ass some to help him slide her panties off. She was very glad she'd gotten time to do some maintenance down there before he'd come over. She knew Ned didn't care. He'd never said anything to her, but it made her feel good.

Suddenly feeling self-conscious, she began to twist over to turn off the light like she usually did, but Ned stopped her. "I like to be able to see what I'm doing down here," he explained, arching an eyebrow.

"Okay," she agreed nervously, laying her head back down on her pillow. She kept her gaze trained on the ceiling, worrying her lip between her teeth, trying to ignore the heat of his stare between her thighs.

When he pressed a kiss to her knee, trailing his lips slowly down the inside of her thigh, her eyelids fluttered closed. She felt the bed shift under her as he settled on the mattress, his hands pushing her thighs open some more. She felt his warm breath on her, making her shiver. Goosebumps erupted along her skin, and she fisted the sheets at her sides. Suddenly, the tip of his tongue was there, trailing against her teasingly, and a startled gasp hitched in her throat, her fingers curling into the sheets tighter. He did it again, and again, and her teeth were digging so hard into her bottom lip, she was sure she was going to puncture the flesh.

His index and middle finger spread her open and when she felt his tongue dip between her folds, she whimpered in the back of her throat, trying to cease the quivering of her thighs and abdomen through sheer willpower but failing miserably. With his free hand braced against her thigh, Ned kept her spread open with his fingers as he dragged his tongue through her folds repeatedly, licking up her arousal. Katie's chest began to ache with the breath she was holding, and she released it in a long, shuddering moan.

At the sound, he thrust his tongue inside her; she squeaked, reflexively clamping her thighs shut, but he pushed them open again, applying a little more force as he dipped his tongue inside her, over and over, drawing her wetness into his mouth. She could just make out the sounds of his lips and tongue moving through her arousal over the sounds of her own embarrassing pants and whimpers, and it made her ache that much more. "Oh," she breathed, her hips gyrating slightly against his face. "I...oh, oh. Ned, right there, God yes."

She felt a vibration against her—was he laughing? She was too delirious to care what he found so amusing, just as long as he kept doing what he was doing. She couldn't believe how good it felt—how had she gone so long without this? Or maybe Ned was, in fact, a wunderkind of exceptional oral.

Katie whined when he unsealed his mouth from her, already lifting her head up to say something him until she felt his tongue circle her center. She grunted in surprise, moaning loudly when he proceeded to flick and prod the hooded cleft, alternating the pressure of these simple gestures. Suddenly, her grip on the sheets wasn't enough to anchor her to the moment—she needed to hold onto him. Squeezing her eyes shut, she grabbed fistfuls of his hair; she tried to pull him closer, tried to convey her approval. Her breaths were short and fast, her breasts heaving slightly as she pushed air in and out of her lungs.

His lips encircled her center then, and he sucked it into his mouth. "Ah!" she yelped; if she was capable of any self-awareness at that moment, she might have been mortified at the sounds she was making. Her moans, the motions of her hips on the bed, grew more desperate as he sucked harder, and when he pushed two fingers inside her, she groaned loudly, tugging on his hair.

"Ned," she mewled unnecessarily, and he moaned in response, the sound reverberating around her.

Holy shit.

She felt the pleasure budding fast between her thighs, and her moans filled the otherwise silent room. His fingers pumped in and out of her, faster still as he worked her center between his lips, under his tongue; she was beyond reason or care—she slammed one hand against the headboard above her head, her back bowing off the bed as she came.

An incoherent shout tumbled from her lips, and her body quaked. He continued to suckle her center while tremors of her orgasm washed over her; she was reduced to wordless sounds and pants, her hands clenching and unclenching his hair in time with the spasms of her walls around his fingers.

After a moment, Ned finally released her and dipped his tongue into her again to lap up her slickness. When he sat up, his lips and chin glistening, he sucked his fingers into his mouth to clean them off, then he grinned at her, raising his eyebrows in questioning. "Well, did I clear your mind?" he asked smugly.

She was too dazed to respond, so she just covered her face with her hand, inhaling tremulously.

Jesus Christ.

The bed shifted, and she opened her eyes again, confused to see him moving off the bed. Her brow furrowed, and she sat up on her elbows. "Wait, where are you going?" she asked hoarsely.

He glanced at her, mildly amused. "Just gonna go wipe my face off in the bathroom, why?"

She blinked and grabbed his hand, pulling him back a step. "I want you—will you just come back to bed?" she asked incredulously.

His eyebrows shot up. "I'll just be a minute, Katie, okay?"

Her mouth opened and closed, and her eyes dropped to his very obvious erection. He noticed the line of her stare and adjusted his hard-on beneath his pants. "I want you to come back to bed."

He laughed and walked back to her, unzipping his pants. "Okay," he whispered.

She twisted toward her nightstand to find a condom while he took off his pants and boxer-briefs. Her eyes flickered back to him and his erection, and she bit her lip.

It was still so hard to think that this was real. They were real. Ned had always been such and dream to her, something just out of her reach. And now, here he was just inches from her and completely naked.

He took the condom from her, watching her face intently, and she tried to play it cool as he sheathed himself with it, while she dug up some lube in her nightstand. It always good to be careful. After he'd rolled the condom onto himself, he crawled onto the bed between her legs, pausing to let her coat him with the lube and issuing a soft sigh at her touch.

Ned hunched down over her and captured her mouth in a slower kiss, cupping her breast in his hand. She arched into his palm, sliding her lube-slick hands over his shoulders and back. The movements of their mouths grew more heated and frenzied, and she found her head lifting off the pillow as she sought his tongue out. When she felt him grazing through her, she broke the kiss and forced him onto his back, climbing over him to straddle his waist.

His eyes went wide, and he exhaled loudly. "Well, shit, Katie," he breathed in awe, grabbing her thighs as she reached between her legs to position him.

Shifting her hips back, she pushed his head through her folds then sunk down on him until her pelvis was flush with his. She inhaled sharply as her walls stretched to accommodate him; she was so full, it was almost painful. It had been a little while, especially since she'd been on top.

Ned groaned softly, his chin tipped upward. His jaw flexed with the sound, and she saw his throat ripple with the hard swallow he took.

Katie began rolling her hips, bracing her hands against his stomach. His hands were firmly wrapped around her waist to aid her movements; he lifted his own hips off the bed just slightly to thrust into her every time she rocked forward. Everything felt so good still; despite the fatigue pressing at her peripheral, her body still felt like it was on fire, aching to be quenched again. She felt too good to be self-conscious anymore. Too good.

Prying his hands from her waist, she brought them up to her chest, molding them to cup her breasts. "I want you to touch me," she moaned.

"Damn, okay," he hissed, bucking his hips against hers as he kneaded the flesh in his palms. He sat up suddenly, wrapping one arm around her to pull her closer, to bring her breasts to his face. He sucked the tip of one into his mouth to tug it with his teeth, and she whimpered. His free hand snuck between their bodies to secure her center between his finger and drew a pleased gasp from her throat. She moved faster as he stroked into her, his mouth never leaving her breast.

There—she could feel the pleasure surging again, faster, sharper, and she cried out abruptly, rocking erratically on top of him. "Oh, Ned," she cried out. "Oh, God."

He tilted his head back to look up at her. "Fuck, again already?" he growled while she rode out her orgasm.

She was unable to respond and just held onto his shoulders, gasping and shuddering, her walls clenching around him inside her. The euphoria was short-lived, however, and her head lolled forward to rest against his. Ned grabbed her hips and rolled her underneath him, but he pulled out of her. She felt strangely empty.

"Can we go from behind?" he asked, his voice low and throaty, and she nodded eagerly.

"Yes," she gasped, twisting onto her stomach.

He pulled her hips up so she was kneeling before him, and she collapsed forward on her elbows, pulling her pillow down to hug to her chest. When he pushed into her, she groaned at the fullness, muffling the rest of her inhuman sounds in the pillow.

The walls were too thin in this complex. She didn't need to give Andrew or god forbid Toby a vocal show.

Ned moved fast, his grunts punctuating the sound of his hips connecting with her ass. She jerked forward every time he thrust into her, but he held her steady with one arm looped around her hips. She already felt sore, but she didn't care, arching her back to push her hips backward to meet his, squeezing him inside her.

He issued a low, gravelly moan then. "I'm gonna come, Katie," he warned, his hips whipping into hers faster; she just moaned in response. He pumped into her a few more times before stilling completely, his erection pulsing inside her as he emptied himself into the condom. "Oh, god, yes." He sighed when he pulled out, releasing his hold on her, and she slid down to the mattress bonelessly on her stomach.

Ned got up, to dispose of the condom she assumed, and she rolled onto her back as he disappeared into the hallway. She knew she should clean up, too, but the exhaustion she'd felt creeping in earlier was back now, stronger than before; keeping her eyes open was a chore. She was vaguely aware when he returned, the bed dipping under his weight.

"I'm kind of hungry," he whispered near her ear. "Want some pizza?"

Her eyes fluttered open, and she made a protesting noise, barely aware of her own movements. "Hurry up and come back. Don't bring food in here, unless you have a plate," she mumbled, yawning as she rolled away to nuzzle down in the pillow.

He didn't respond for a moment, and she was almost asleep when he finally whispered back, "Actually I'm not that hungry. I'd rather lay here and sleep right next to you," the words just barely reaching her through the fog of sleep as he laid down behind her, cocooning her against his chest and pressing his lips to her shoulders and back as she fell asleep.

* * *

"Suckle? Really?" Ned groaned in frustration. "You're cheating, aren't you?"

"You're just mad that I got thirty-six points with a triple word score," she said with satisfaction, smiling proudly.

"I would never begrudge you a win," Ned's grin grew a little in the camera lens. "It happens so rarely online."

_Cat_  was his next move.

She shook her head disapprovingly even though he couldn't see her with the Skype window minimized. "That's because this is computer scrabble. In real life, I always win, Banks and you know it."

Her next move was  _mount_.

He sighed in frustration. "You're just teasing me now," he groaned. "It's been almost two weeks."

"Hey, I had two exams today." She laughed, pulling up the window to scowl at him. "I can't even think anymore, and you're not wearing a shirt."

"Is tomorrow your last exam?" He asked.

"Yes, I'm driving home after." She nodded. "Don't forget. It's your turn."

"I know. I have like nothing to go on here," he muttered. "Give me a minute."

"You better not be cheating," she teased.

It's been hard for either of them to see each other the rest of the nearly two weeks until winter break, and while Words with Friends has always been their game, it's not doing anything to release the pent-up sexual tension.

_Cats_.

Katie busted out laughing. "Okay, I'm officially taking pity on you and ending this scrabble game babe." She said.

He ended their Skype call and her cell phone buzzed with a text notification a few seconds later.

**December 22nd - 6:30 pm - Ned: My mom's hovering again. This okay?**

She moved her computer off her bed and set it on her dresser, toeing off her socks before falling to the mattress and kicking her feet up behind her. She's the world's slowest texter because she had a knack for typing every word out, but it's a trait Ned was well aware of so he'd wait patiently for each response.

**December 22nd - 6:32 pm - Katie: Yeah. It's fine. You two not getting along?**

**December 22nd - 6:32 pm - Ned: She just hates that she found out we're having sex. Even if she found out super late and doesn't know that.**

She chuckled, just thinking about Delia hovering over their conversations made her chuckle, but this made her blush and then some. Of course, Delia hated that they were having sex. Any mother would. She doubted her mother would be as happy for her sex life if she were Aaron.

**December 22nd - 6:35 pm - Katie: Well, good thing I love that we're having sex then. Did she just find out?**

Ned was usually quick with a reply, even while indulging her hatred for text speak. But there's a significant pause before her phone pinged again.

Enough time for her to leave the room and make a quick bag of popcorn for while she studied for her last exam.

**December 22nd - 6:40 pm - Ned: I love that we are too ;) I think so. I also think we should stay at your parents during most of the break. We won't get a second of alone time here.**

She rolled her eyes, knowing Ned would eventually want to go to her parent's house. He always did. They probably wouldn't get much alone time there too, but at least no one would be hovering over them.

**December 22nd - 6:41 pm - Katie: Is your mom going to greet me with a shotgun the next time I see her?**

A good two minutes later he finally replied, she has to pull herself away from the popcorn and her textbook to look at her phone.

**December 22nd - 6:43 pm - Ned: No, it's okay. It's just so you're prepared. She found the new box of condoms I got for over winter break and cornered me about them. I don't think she thinks we've done anything yet because it wasn't opened unless your mom said anything. Granted we've been sleeping together since February. I thought everyone knew?**

She couldn't contain her laughter now. She could see it all playing out.

Of course, Delia would find his condoms. And of course, Delia made him talk to her about it.

She knew just was to say.

**December 22nd - 6:44 pm - Katie: Must be because I look so innocent. You know, innocent I'm little Katie Clancy. My mom wouldn't say anything. She's sworn to secrecy lol**

Immediate reply. She must've reeled him in with that last text.

**December 22nd - 6:45 pm - Ned: I knew your mom wouldn't and yeah, that's probably it. No one ever suspects you. If only they knew how dirty you really are.**

She smiled. Yeah, if only they knew.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: We're getting closer and closer to some harder times... so enjoy the goodness of Christmas and going home to Grandview and brace yourselves for what is going to come over the next few chapters. Enjoy! xx Mariah**

* * *

Katie promised to herself that she wouldn't become one of those girls that became all about her boyfriend and lost her own identity in the process. She loved Ned; it was a fact she couldn't deny now. But she had to live her own life while in the city and so she refused to ask questions, especially when it felt like Ned was working 24/7.

So she went to school, hung out with Hannah and Andrew every weekend, and even some other girls from school when she got the rare chance. She studied every night until she went to sleep and worked late nights at the diner to make some extra cash. She studied for her finals like a maniac and worked to settle into a routine.

But Katie still tried really hard to be a good girlfriend because Ned was an impeccable boyfriend, even when he's almost three hundred miles away. She'd be home in about four days, but first, she had to get through the last of her

college finals.

Ned knew how hard she'd been working and how exhausted she was. He was so excited for this winter break. It would be a whole month for her to come home and relax with him.

Katie was studying with Hannah when she was struck with the urge to do something for him that's more than teasing texts or filthy promises for her return. Hannah was less than helpful with ideas, and being so far away she didn't know what to do.

One thing she knew was that he was working and was not planning on leaving the precinct until he found some sort of lead in his case. So she tracked down the number of his favorite pizza place in Grandview and called to arrange a delivery to him.

A large pepperoni pizza and a bottle of coke. He was so easy to please.

She gave her credit card info to the impatient man taking the order. "Can you tell him it's from his girlfriend Katie?" She asked, slipping her card back into her wallet.

"Why would I?" The male voice on the other end of the line asked.

"Because I'm buying merchandise from your business and asked you too?" She scoffed, annoyed. "I'm trying to do a nice thing for my boyfriend because I live far away and I want him to know."

"Yeah, okay. Anything else?" The guy asked monotonously.

She bit her lip. "Throw in an order of the Oreo cookie crumble too."

"Ok." And then the guy disconnected.

"What a jerk," she muttered and rolled her eyes. She threw her phone into the blanket and stretched her arms over her head. "I hope Ned likes it. Do you think he'll like it/"

"He's gonna love you forever. It's pizza, Katie," Hannah laughed, flipping the page on her textbook. "Now about this equation…"

"Yeah, hold on." Katie paused for a second before divulging back into Pre-Calculus.

* * *

Later, Ned video called to thank her for the surprise when he got home. "You're the best girlfriend ever," he told her. "I was so hungry, but I forgot my wallet in my truck and didn't want to get up. Thank you."

She shrugged it off but really knew she was the best girlfriend ever.

And they're gonna do great.

Distance, shmistance.

"What if..." She bit her lip as she looked up to see that her door was still open but that Hannah's door was shut. "I said I wanted to give you a little show...?"

His lips spread into a smile. "I'd say give me a show sexy girl." He winked at her.

"Oh yeah? Well let me shut the door," she turned her computer to rest on her bed as she went to close her door, slowly walking back toward her bed. She stepped back from the computer. "Is this a good angle?"

"It's kind of low," he said.

"Okay," she grabbed a few pillows and propped it up before stepping back. "How's that?"

"Good," he smiled. "I can see all of you now."

"Good," she blushed a little before she slowly started to pull up her t-shirt. It had been a long time since she'd thought about wanting to do a striptease. She gracefully pulled it over her head. She was wearing a light blue bralette. It was a little small, but she made it work and by the way, Ned was looking at her, she didn't care that it was too small anymore. She ran her finger along the bralette as she chewed on her lip. "Is this sexy enough?"

He laughed, almost enough to make her uneasy and want to completely forget this idea, until she saw the way he was looking at her through the camera lens. "Yes, I've been thinking about you all... day." He breathed, leaning back.

"Where would you touch me if you were here?" She moved her hands over her bra strap as she slowly unbuttoned her jeans, sliding the slipper down to show she'd worn matching panties.

"I would kiss you... on your neck while my hands held your waist." He explained, moving his computer off to the side of him. "And you wore matching panties," he groaned and she watched as he ran his hand along his thigh through his sweatpants. "Do you want to see these come off?"

"Oh, I like that." She nodded slowly, smiling. "I do, please." She giggled and slid down her pants while he slid down his. "This is going way too slowly for my liking," she crawled up onto her bed and turned her computer on top of the pillows to kneel in front of it. "C'mon Ned..."

She watched as he quickly made his boxers go away too and she slid her panties off as she reached over to grab her vibrator from her nightstand. She'd gotten it a few weeks ago and wasn't sure if Ned even knew she had it, but when he caught a glance of it, he started to chuckle.

"Is that what I think it is?" He asked, the camera trained on his face and bare chest.

She nodded slowly as she positioned herself over it and turned it on. "Wanna see what it can do?" She asked slowly, licking her lips.

"Yes, please." He groaned.

She slowly rocked herself against the vibrations and moaned as she looked at her computer. "Move the camera down more," she groaned.

"It's already there," he said.

"Oh, no," she sighed, seeing his stomach as the screen froze. She knotted her brows together and groaned. "I think your connection is messing up because it froze on your stomach."

"What?" At least she could still hear his voice. "But I can still see you? Don't stop... it'll just take a minute."

"I'm gonna call you right back, okay?" She said and ended the call.

Katie laid back into her bed and sighed. Well, that was a bust. Sh had to call him back before he got too antsy.

When she heard her computer buzz with a facetime request, she sat up to see if was from her mom and not Ned. Wow. Okay. She looked down at herself. She knew she probably should grab her shirt or something because she knew that her nipples could be seen through the light fabric.

She clicked accept as she leaned off her bed just enough to grab her shirt and sit back up as her screen loaded. She'd expected to see her mother but instead watched as both Jim and Melinda's faces loaded on her computer.

"Is it working?" Her dad asked, looking over at her mom. "Oh, Katie! Hi!"

She held the shirt up to cover herself and groaned. "Oh, fuck." She muttered and pushed the computer screen down a little. "Hold on mom, dad. I'm here. Just one second, okay?" She pulled her shirt on quickly and fixed her hair before she slowly started to tilt her computer screen back up.

"What's that buzzing? Is that your phone or something?" Her dad asked.

Katie went wide-eyed as she spotted her vibrator on the bed, still buzzing from where she'd dropped it when she'd ended things with Ned when his connection messed up. She slowly turned it off and slid it off the bed. "Oh, that's nothing. What's up? It's kind of late..." She glanced at the clock. It was only ten, on a Saturday.

"Oh, nothing much kiddo." Jim smiled. "Your mom and I were just talking about how I'm going to the city tomorrow for a conference and we got to talking about you. We thought we'd give you a call."

"That's great, dad. We should try and meet up. I really miss you both," she said, itching her neck as she reached to grab her phone from where it sat off to the side of her bed. She should text Ned. She could tell there was gonna be a bit of time before she could call him back.

"What's up Katie? Did we interrupt something?" Her mom asked. "I could tell you were shocked to see your dad when you answered."

"Yeah. I was a bit indisposed when I answered." She blushed, shaking her head. "I'm just texting Ned. He lost connection with me before you called."

"Oh, we understand." Her mom snickered, elbowing her dad. "But how's school been?"

"It's good. I've been so busy since the beginning of this month, but I made the Dean's List again so it's all worth it."

She explained, nodding her head as she sent a quick text saying her parents called and she'd call as soon as they hung up.

"That's great!" Her mom cheered. "So proud of you baby!"

"I'm proud of you too. How are things with you and Ned? Your mom said you were fighting?" Her dad asked, his face serious. "I have been busy at the hospital and now with preparing for the conference. I didn't really get a chance to see you when you dropped in to help mom out."

"Yeah. I guess we were... for a hot minute when I was back in Grandview." She sighed and rubbed her chin. "But we're good now. Ned's good. He's working a lot, trying to get some overtime this month."

"Overtime is always good when you're young!" Her dad applauded. "That's good for him, even if you can't see each other that much."

"Yeah, but we try and video chat all the time." She said, shrugging. "We're making it work. I can't wait to see him."

"That's good, bug. Now about tomorrow..." Her dad said. "I'll probably be done around one, so I can come to your apartment then. I could even give you a ride home too on my way out of town."

"Alright, sounds good dad. I think I'm still gonna drive my car, but I'll follow you for sure." She nodded. She always felt safer when she was with her dad, even she was just driving behind him on the highway. "I can't wait to see you. I wish you were coming to mom, but I'll see you tomorrow night or the next morning if it's too late."

"I can't leave Lana or the store, Katie, otherwise I would." Her mom explained and eased herself back into the frame of the camera. "Lana's got a pretty bad cold. She's in bed with us, but fast asleep."

"Aw, poor baby." She pouted and blew three kisses, one for each of them. "Give her a hug for me. But I should get going and give Ned a callback. I love you both."

"Love you too, sweetheart. I'll see you tomorrow." Jim smiled and blew her a kiss before giving her mom the phone.

"I love you, Katie." Her mom smiled and blew her a kiss too. "I'm glad to hear things are still going well with Ned. I can't wait to see you."

"I can't wait to see you either. Longest two weeks ever," she sighed.

"I know, I miss and love you so much. Drive safe tomorrow and say hi to Ned for me," Her mom said.

"I will. Love you." She said, ending the call. She called Ned immediately after and moved her computer so she could grab her pillows and lay her head on them. "Hey, you." Ned's face loaded a moment later and he was still in the same position he'd been in when she left him. "Sorry for taking so long. My dad wanted to tell me he was coming into town and they wanted to catch up. Speaking of, mom says hi."

"It's fine, Katie. No worries," Ned said, easing her worries with his beaming smile. "I understand and love your parents. I'm just glad you called me back in under an hour."

"Of course. I wouldn't leave you hanging for that long," she smirked and licked her lips. "Wanna give this another try?"

He chuckled. "Oh, yeah." He nodded.

* * *

The snow began to fall lightly as Katie drove through downtown Grandview, dusting the rooftops like powdered sugar.

The sun went down earlier and earlier now, as the days crept towards the new year, and the snow-swollen sky had swallowed the sun hours ago. She drove carefully, staring out the into the quiet traffic for it only being eight o'clock on Christmas Eve.

She glanced toward her mother's store as she drove past it, the lights shut off and curtains pulled closed for the holidays. Katie continued driving and eventually watched as her dad took the turn toward her childhood home, but she continues toward Ned's family apartment. She found a quick parking spot and grabbed her phone and duffle bag as she got out of the car. Rubbing her hands together for warmth, she sent a quick text for Ned to buzz her in. Once he did, he met her on the landing of the second floor.

"Hey, how was the drive and lunch with your dad?" Ned smiled as she came up the last step, meeting him in an eager hug as she dropped her bag by his feet.

"It was long, but it's usual. There was terrible traffic because of the holidays. It sucked." She said, tucking herself up into her neck. "I can't wait to just snuggle up with you tonight and not have to get up early tomorrow. Lunch was good for my soul, you know? I hadn't had a chance to really talk with my dad in a while. "

"That's good, Katie." he smiled and hugged her again, breathing in the smell and feel of her in his arms as he rubbed her back. "I'm so glad you're here for this whole month. A whole month..."

"I know," she laughed, smiling up at him as their lips met briefly, almost teasingly.

"We should get in before my mom comes looking," he said pulling back slightly before she had the chance to pull him back in. She nodded slowly and sighed. She supposed he was right. "I need my own place."

She completely agreed. He needed his own space, so bad.

Ned grabbed her bag and they walked back to the apartment. He closed the door behind her and went straight for his room with her bag. She knew they planned for them to stay at her parents, but their first night was here."

Katie didn't see Delia at first and was thankful. She didn't need to be ambushed with any questions or concerns, especially not after an almost four-hour traffic-filled car ride. She pulled off her boots and jacket before crossing the living room quickly.

"Oh, Katie. It's so nice to see you!" Delia called from the other side of the room.

She'd almost got to the bedroom. Almost. She quickly turned around and smiled at Ned's mother, accepting the embrace that she could see coming immediately. "It's good to see you, Delia." Katie hugged her lightly before pulling back.

"So, you and Ned, are things getting serious between you two?" Delia asked, holding her at an arm's length.

Katie can already feel her face heating up, her heart nearly beating right out of her chest. God, this was exactly what she'd wanted to avoid. Even if it was a harmless question like this.

She wished Ned were with her. He'd be able to help soothe her anxiety of talking to his mother about anything regarding their relationship.

"Yes. I really care for him, Delia. So much." She tried to smile, even as she felt her hands get clammy.

Where was Ned? Did he shut his bedroom door or something and forget she was here?

"This year we've spent together has been wonderful." Katie was stammering out a pathetic reply, she knew this.

Delia must've taken pity on her. The mother sighed and motioned for Katie to sit next to her on the couch, and the walk across the room felt like the green mile.

Oh god, was this happening? She barely made it through the talk with her own parents when she twelve, let alone one with Delia's.

"Look, I knew this was bound to happen. I know how my son can be, but I think you should take things slow." Delia sighed, squeezing Katie's hand as she sat down.

"I know," she said, nodding. She needed to choose her words carefully here. Delia tended to be high strung about Ned, especially his love life. "We are just enjoying each other as much as we can now."

"I just don't want you two to rush into anything," Delia quipped, smiling. "I remember how it can be at your age when everything's new and exciting. It's so easy to get carried away."

The sound of blood rushing in her ears began to subside when she realized that Delia didn't actually know she was already sleeping with Ned already. Suddenly she doesn't feel such an intense need for the floor to swallow her up completely.

"Just…take it slow," Delia reminded her again. "For my sake… and yours."

Katie nearly laughed at the reply but nodded. Looks like things would have to stay PG over here, for Delia's sake and her own. She didn't know what Delia would do if she saw Ned slip her any tongue or grab her ass like he always does.

God, the mother would probably have a heart attack.

* * *

It was hardly PG. Behind locked doors, things were different. Ned's lips were distracting. She tried to read the different class descriptions, but he kept pressing his lips against her.

"I thought you said early registration was a few weeks ago?" he whispered, dragging his lips up the side of her breast.

"I've been trying to give my advisor some time to sober up. The actual deadline isn't until after the new year," she said, peeking over at him. "I'm trying to read these descriptions, you know."

"I thought you could multitask," he grinned against her. He maintained eye contact as latched his mouth around her nipple through the fabric of her tank top, just as she turned the page of her course catalog for the spring semester.

"So…" he moved his tongue around, causing a small gasp from her. "Accounting?" she pondered aloud. It was her last semester to take any general classes before she needed any concentration on her major, especially if she planned on transferring at the end of this year.

"Mm, pencil skirts and reading glasses." He hummed against her, glancing up her. "Sexy."

"Yeah, right," she nearly snorted. She flips from the front to the back of the catalog. "How about welding for beginners?"

"Also ridiculously sexy," he whispered, reaching down to smack her ass. "You'd look good with a welding mask and jeans on."

"I could weld by day and strip by night as I work my way toward my real dream: dancing." She said dramatically, all hand gestures involved.

He laughed and rested his head on the pillow beside her. "How have you seen Flashdance, but not any of the Lord of the Rings movies? We're going to have so many movie marathons this summer."

She could hear him move around the room while she continued to look through the college classes, and it's so easy to picture him as he probably threw an outfit together for the Christmas Eve party they were going to tomorrow. The background sounds of him trying to decide which tie to wear served as the soundtrack to her little mental movie.

It's nearly pathetic how bad she had it for him.

"What about you?" she asked him, forcing herself to focus. "How's work?" She rolled over onto her back and let the catalog close.

"I'm close to getting my detective's badge like I think I might get it next year," he grinned, holding up the ties. "Which one?"

"That's awesome! Don't wear a tie," she shook her head. "The Queen isn't coming to the house, honey."

"Fine," he sighed, turning around to fix his collar in the mirror. "I'm just wearing jeans."

"My dad probably will too. Don't worry," she hopped off the bed and walked over to him, wrapping her arm around him. "It's not like it's some big thing. You've met everyone before."

"But last Christmas no one knew about us. Now I'm not just Ned, I'm your boyfriend," he sighed, shrugging. "I'm just worried my mom is going to make a scene. Hell knows we don't need your grandma Faithing finding out we've had sex."

Katie met his gaze in the mirror and nodded in agreement. Her grandma Faith did not need to know that. Ever. Until they were married. If they got married, now she was thinking about the future and getting a little too excited.

Did Ned want to get married?

She wished she could approach these decisions the way Ned does. He's always thinking three steps ahead and weighing every option, and Katie could barely stand to think about the next week, she's so unsure of what she's doing. But she was pretty sure that Delia didn't have a clue.

"I don't think your mom even knows we have an avid sex life," she reassured him. "Not from what she said to me. She was telling me to hit the breaks."

"I know," he turned around and leaned down to kiss her briefly. Her arm found its way around his neck as their tongues mingled and then they broke away. "I think everything is going to be fine. She hasn't said anything to me either. I'm getting worked up over nothing."

"Okay," she whispered. "Glad to know it's both of us just getting each other worked up."

"Yeah, we'll work on that," he grinned, leaning down to kiss her neck, nibbling just slightly. "In the meantime, I think I want to be your love slave."

She smiled and pulled at his hair on his neck just the way he liked it. "The pay sucks," she giggled.

"Ah, but the benefits are awesome," he smiled against her skin.

* * *

Katie woke up in the dead of night, trembling in fear. Just being back in Grandview she was already channeling something from her mother.

She couldn't breathe. One second she was drowning, her fingers just barely touching the surface and the next she was awake again.

She turned away from Ned's arms and sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes. She peeked over her shoulder and it's three in the morning. She knew she had to write down the vision or she'd forget it. So in the darkness, she was scrabbling to urgently write down the last few words before they faded forever and she didn't know that it was even possible to write about something so dark when she was barely awake.

She eventually found her journal and pulled the pen from the spiral. After getting her thoughts on paper,

Katie went back to bed.

Ned rolled onto his stomach and looked over her. He sleepily rubbed his eyes. "Hey, where'd you go?" He whispered, kissing her forehead.

"Nowhere," she whispered sliding under the covers. "I just had to write something down quick."

He peeked over at the clock, blinking himself awake a little more. "At three ten in the morning? What's wrong?" He muttered, sitting up. "I'm up."

"Go back to bed." She slowly sat up next to him, pressing a kiss to his neck. She was hoping to distract him a little and didn't want to involve him in her ghost business. Not if she didn't have to, at least. Ned was in enough danger when he was at work every single day. She didn't need to put him in any unnecessary danger. "I'm fine. I just had a vision."

"Oh," his eyes softened and he leaned back into bed a little, his hand skimming over her shoulder and down her arm. "Are you okay?"

"No," she said honestly, peeling back her reserve just a little as she hugged him. It felt amazing to confide in him; to feel his arms wrap around her. "It was awful."

"You can talk to me about these things, you know," he urged, holding her tight to his chest, rubbing his hands over her back.

She looked away. It was hard for her to open up about her visions. Sometimes they were terrible. The worst moments of her life. "I didn't want to involve you," she whispered, shaking her head. "You have enough to deal with at work. All of this," she motioned to herself, laughing."It's a lot."

"You don't get to make that decision, babe. I signed up for all of this when we started dating," he looked down at her, holding her face lightly. "I love you and I want to take care of you, and I can't if you aren't being completely honest with me."

She sighed and nodded. She looked up at him, leaning up to kiss him for a brief moment. "Being completely honest," she whispered into the dark, moving back from his lips. "I'm scared that if I tell you all this stuff that one day you'll get fed up with all of it and leave…"

There was a moment of silence as Ned leaned down to hold her gaze in the moonlight. She stared into his eyes, her love burning for him through hers, and his was equally returned.

"Never," he said softly, his mouth spreading into a smile. "I'm in this for the long haul, Katie. I trust and love you."

"Me too," she whispered, reaching out to hold his hand. "I trust and love you too."

"I'm glad we're on the same page," he whispered. "Let's get some sleep." He laid back down and she laid beside him, turned on her side to face him. "What?"

"Thank you for being here," she whispered, leaning in to rest her head on his chest. His arm wound around her, and she basked in the warmth of his body and the smell of him. "For helping me after…"

"I'll always be here for the after," he reassured her and kissed her forehead. "Always."

* * *

Katie and Ned rushed downstairs to the basement with bags from her car. It was all of Katie's gifts she'd gotten for her family that they still needed to wrap.

She had been so swamped with school and work Katie had forgotten to do it.

"I'm good at gift-wrapping," Ned said setting the bag down on the bed. "We'll be down in no time. Just tell me what's for who."

"Thanks for helping. I guess I had a monkey brain during finals," she laughed, taking her jacket off quickly and going to grab the couple of different wrapping papers, scissors and tape her mom had given her.

"You were swamped with a full schedule," he said, pulling out the latest Call of Duty. "Is this mine? Oh my god, I love you."

"That's for Aaron. I already wrapped your gifts and put them under the tree this morning." She laughed, shaking her head. Of course, she'd thought about getting it for him but Delia had told her not to. "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised."

Ned pulled out the amazon card. "Mackenzie, for her candy crush addiction."

"Yep," she nodded, grabbing the bag and going to grab a gift bag and tissue paper she'd gotten special for her little sister. "Plus a new swimsuit and goggles. It's all in there. I want to wrap that one."

"She's gonna freak," Ned laughed, grabbing the other bag. "Who's this for?" He pulled out a black box, that already had a bow wrapped around it with a little gift tag that needed to be written on. "Can I open it?"

"Sure," she said, grabbing the tag and writing a little something with her pen before going back to readying the gift bag she'd gotten for Mackenzie's gift. "It's a necklace for my mom. She's always wanted pearls. And your mom thinks I don't know my way around an estate sale. Psh, I got that for a steal. Did you get that gift for my dad?"

"What'd gift for your dad?" He asked, setting the necklace box down on the bed. He saw the candles she'd gotten for his mom, and played along like he'd forgotten to get the gift. He went on to wrap the video game quickly with blue paper and hand it over to her to sign.

"Ned Banks," she muttered, putting her pen to the gift. "Did you forget to get my dad's whiskey?"

He snickered and looked up at her. "It's in the car. I just forgot it out there," he said.

"Oh, good." She sighed. "I thought you forgot to get it completely."

"I'm just playing with you, babe. Don't worry," he said, winking as stood up. "I'll be right back."

"Okay. Bring these up and put them under the tree," she said, handing him the gift for Aaron, her mother, and Mackenzie. "I'll finish the rest of these up. Make sure my dad doesn't see it."

"I will," he nodded, jogging up the stairs quickly with the gifts in hand.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: For a little bonus, there is a chapter about the light show that the Clancy's and Banks' went to in my other story It's a Family Affair. The chapter is called "Candy Cane" :) Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

After Katie, Ned, Delia, Jim, Melinda and the rest of the Clancy clan returned to their cars after going through the light show about an hour drive away the adults all huddled together once the kids were in the Jeep.

"Should we get hotel rooms? I heard traffic is at a stop from an accident on the highway and the county roads are closed because of the snow," Ned said, checking his phone from an incoming text. "One of my buddies is on traffic duty because of being late."

"We have a lot of hotel points," Melinda nodded, looking up at Jim. "We could probably get two or even three rooms for all of us, right?"

Jim nodded, fishing out his phone. "I'll make some calls."

Katie looked over at Ned and then bit her lip. If she didn't say something now she'd probably be bunked with Aaron or Mackenzie. "Should I ask my mom to get us a King?" She asked.

"Do you think she would? I would so love to not have to share a room with Mack, even if I love her." He said quietly, not wanting his mother to hear them.

She nodded, squeezing his hand as she walked over to her mom who was by Delia. Fuck. She had to get her away from her now too.

"Hey, mom," she said, seeing both her and Delia turn to look at her.

"Hey, baby. I was just talking sleeping arrangements with Delia before I got tell your dad what rooms to get." Melinda waved her over, wrapping her arm around her. "Do you and Ned want to have Mack or Aaron bunk with you guys?"

"I was just coming to talk to you about that." She nodded, smiling at Delia and then her. "Do you think Ned and I could get the king suite together on our own? We haven't really had a chance to be alone the last few days or months really."

Katie could already read the anxiety of her boyfriend's mother's face as Delia shook her head to Melinda. She rolled her eyes. She almost hoped Delia didn't see, but she honestly didn't care anymore.

"I'll work my magic so you and Ned can have the king instead of daddy and I," Melinda nodded, winking at her.

"Really? Thank you so much, mom! I'm gonna go tell Ned." She got a little too excited and hugged her mom tightly, but then squeezed Delia's hand. "Don't worry, Delia. Okay?" She could see that it didn't help, but at least she'd tried.

Melinda laughed and poked fun at Delia, who couldn't stop worrying about Ned and Katie. The mother craned her neck to see her run over to him, sliding in next to him on her car he was leaning on. She nudged him and told him the good news, which he reacted to by pulling her into his arms and kissing her.

"Don't tell me," Delia groaned, looking back at Melinda. "They're having sex, aren't they? Do you know?"

"I do know the answer to that question," Melinda said, looking over at her. "I think you do too."

"I know," Delia groaned and covered her eyes. "I found his condoms. I tried to still deny it because it wasn't opened."

"Ahh," Melinda nodded, shaking her head before she looked over at the couple, who were kissing one moment and talking aesthetically to each other the next. "Katie told me when it happened the first time in February."

"February?" Delia gasped and looked over at them too. "Katie told me she would take it slow like five days ago. I should've known she was lying…"

Melinda couldn't stop laughing now. "She was most likely trying to soothe your nerves, Deels. Calm down a little, okay? They're both consenting adults." She wrapped her arm around her and rubbed her side. "And I'd look away before they start to make out again."

"Ugh, okay." Delia sighed as Jim came over. "They're gonna have sex tonight aren't they?"

"Probably, but don't think about it. Just rent a movie and take a bubble bath." Melinda soothed her friend and smiled as her husband came over. "So were there any rooms?"

"I got us three of them. Two double queen rooms and a king as usual." Jim said, leaning down to kiss her lips lightly. "What are the sleeping arrangements?"

"So, I told Katie we'd let her and Ned have to king this time." She told him lightly. She could already see the confusion on his face. "So we'll be bunking with Aaron and Lana. Delia is gonna bunk with Mack." The disappointment settled on her husband's face and she leaned up to kiss him briefly. "I know... I know, but Katie asked me. I know she wouldn't have if she didn't really want it."

"Okay. I guess that works. Katie and Ned get the king this time," he sighed, leaning down to kiss her again and whisper in her ear. "So in the shower then?"

Melinda hummed playfully, running her hands up her husband's back as she nodded.

* * *

Katie practically skipped down the hall to their room. They'd taken the stairs to get up to their room on the second floor quicker. She and Ned had taken a detour to Walmart and had gotten cheap bathing suits so they could go down to the hot tub.

And condoms. Even some watermelon-flavored lube, for fun. And some chocolate and wine. They had a whole night together, in their own hotel room and they weren't going to waste it.

"You can change in the bathroom," he said, kissing her as he put the key in the door and pushed it open.

She took the black bikini out of the bag and went into the bathroom on the right. "Don't forget to put the wine in the fridge so it doesn't get warm."

He nodded and put the wine away first before he forgot. He put the chocolate in the freezer, knowing that's how Katie liked it and then pulled his shirt overhead.

He laid it on the couch nearby and grabbed the blue swim shorts he'd gotten as he pulled his jacket off. He pulled his belt loose from his jeans as he sat down to pull off his boots and socks. He stood up to push down his jeans and boxers last, and into his trunks as the bathroom door opened.

He walked over and adjusted them as he walked toward Katie. "Are there bigger towels in there? The ones by the pool are never big enough," he said, licking his lips as he saw Katie bend down to grab the bigger bath towels under the sink.

"Yeah. Here's one for you," she said, handing him one and grabbing another for her. "And one for me. Ready to go?"

He took one more look over her bathing suit. Being that it was Christmas time in New York they just had basic colors of basic swimsuits. But Katie looked beautiful, her hair over her shoulder as she held the towel over her arm.

The bikini hugged her body and showed her off modestly. Katie had a good, strong figure, one she earned over time from sports and just jogging and eating right now.

"Earth to Ned…" she whispered, laughing a little.

His eyes flitted back up to hers and he didn't know what to say. "Hi," he said dumbly.

"Like what you see?" She pressed her hand up against his chest, flattening it.

He grew harder in his swim shorts, and he watched as she noticed and with one hand, she took it out and grasped hold of him.

"What do we have here…" She led him back to sit on the bed with a small push of her hand on his chest.

He chuckled darkly, leaning back on the comfy mattress. Her hand was moving again his dick slowly. A not so intricate science really, his whole body was jello to her touch.

"Mmm you feel so good…" he trailed off as her lips brushed against his chest, pressing delicate kisses there.

Her lips were the softest he'd ever felt. She didn't stop there, her lips trailing up to his neck, where her tongue flicked out to trace his clavicle and the tendon leading up to his jaw. He released a soft groan, his hand coming up to palm the back of her head.

And then she was kissing him, hungrily, desperately.

"What's gotten into you?" he murmured against her mouth.

She laughed giddily, her hand stopping as she pulled back to look at him. "I don't know. We're together. I feel alive." She smiled at him.

He paused to stare at her in amazement, then he yielded to her kiss readily, returning it with equal fervor. She massaged his thick shaft, feeling it pulsating underneath her fingertips. She had gotten very good at giving him handjobs over the last year, and Ned moaned in pleasure. He slowly caressed her breast from underneath her swimsuit as he felt himself getting closer.

"I'm gonna come," he gulped, his breaths coming in pants.

Katie suddenly started to slow down her hand movements, and, looking at him sensually, began to bring her mouth down to his cock. Moving forward, his fingers pulling back her hair like torn silk, he smiled dumbly at her as he watched him disappear into her mouth.

He moaned, not sure if he was going to be able to hold it any longer. He warned her again that he was close, but to his surprise, she didn't take her mouth off him. When he finally came, she sensually cleaned him ff, and then, when she was finished, lifted her mouth to smile at him.

She crooked her finger, motioning, and he bent down and put his mouth on hers.

"You dirty girl," he whispered as he wrapped her into his arms once again, kissing her sensually, his arms wrapped around her body, holding her tightly as he moved her onto her back. They'd moved further up the bed now and Ned looked deeply into her eyes. "Time to return the favor."

She whispered softly to him, "Later. Can we go down to the hot tub?"

He smiled dumbly. "Later," he agreed.

* * *

They ran into his mother by the elevator, where the ice and vending machines were as well. Katie sighed and slowly walked around the corner of the wall, Ned's hand intertwined with hers.

"Don't worry," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her head.

"I do worry," she sighed, biting her bottom lip. She cursed herself for the light hickey on his neck from where she'd bitten down a little too hard.

"Oh, are you two kids going down the pool?" Delia asked, holding her bucket under for fresh ice.

"Hot tub," Katie nodded, leaning her head on Ned's shoulder as he wound his arm around her waist. "We stopped and got cheap bathing suits from Walmart; thought it would be a good way to relax before going to bed. Finals were so stressful and I can't wait to relax."

"I think I can agree with Katie on that one," Ned chuckled. "With Christmas behind us and the new year right around the corner… I'm excited to relax and enjoy this time I have with Katie."

"That's wonderful, you two." Delia smiled, taking the bucket away as it filled with ice quickly. "Well, I better get back. I don't want to wake Mackenzie. I think she already fell asleep. You know how I like my ice water before bed, Ned."

"Yes, goodnight mom. I love you." Ned said smiling at her.

"If Mack isn't asleep tell her goodnight for me," Katie said stepping in the elevator as it opened with Ned. holding his hand tightly in hers. "See you at breakfast. Have a good night Delia."

"You too," Delia smiled at them as the elevators closed.

Katie waited until the doors closed to kiss Ned, who'd been secretly squeezing her butt on and off for the last five minutes. "You tease," she giggled. "Your mom was right there… you know I told you we should be good around her. She's worked up enough with us alone in a room together."

He laughed, shrugging. "I guess I like pushing the boundaries a little," he winked. "I always have."

She rolled her eyes at him and stepped out of the elevator as they got to the fourth floor, which the pool was on. She knew that about him already.

"Like smoking cigarettes," she said softly and put her towel on a table before walking over to the hot tub. She turned on the jets and stepped in, slowly sinking down into the water and sitting down.

"Yeah, sometimes," he said, setting his towel on the same table. He followed her over to the hot tub and stepped into the warm water, sitting next to her. "I know it bothers you. That's why I don't smoke around you. It's only when I'm stressed."

"Which is all the time now," she said, looking over at him as she held his hand under the water. She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "I get it. I do. Your work is stressful, but at the same time, I don't. They cause cancer, Ned."

"I know the risks and I'm gonna quit. I will," he reassured her. "I just need them right now. Work is crazy and they take my mind off it for a couple of minutes every couple hours when I can step outside. Can you handle it for a couple more months? Until work slows down again. The holidays make everyone crazy."

She sighed and held his eyes for a moment. She didn't want to tell him she was okay with it. She wanted to keep fighting until he relented and told her he would quit smoking those stinky cigarettes because he wanted to live as long as possible with her. But she guessed a couple more months wouldn't kill him.

"Okay," she sighed and leaned up to kiss him briefly. "In a couple of months, you're going to quit."

He nodded. "I promise," he whispered and kissed her against.

She pulled back for a moment, just to make sure no one was in the pool area and there weren't any obvious cameras or big windows. She straddled Ned as they kissed again, a bit more freely.

It was almost eleven, not many people would be coming in this late since the pool was only open until midnight. And if they did, oh well. They would stop then, but for now, neither of them cared.

She kissed him again, this time roughly, forcefully. Her tongue invaded his mouth, and he responded, just as needy as she. When a moan came low from her throat, he growled in response.

"Katie," Ned said firmly, finally breaking away. "Let's not get too hot and heavy in the hot tub."

"Yeah," she laughed, licking her lips. "I've just missed you… and we had to share the basement with my cousins for the last two days."

He nodded, looking up at her. "I know," he responded

"I need you. I need this, Ned." She whined, pressing their lips together again.

Who was he to resist? They were going to do this same dance once they got to their room again, only better and in bed, completely naked and alone.

He knew he would resist, just enough to make sure no one came in, but he gave in just enough to get her to moan as he palmed her breasts underneath her top. She giggled against his lips and slowly slipped her hand inside his pants, earning a moan from him in return.

His eyes fixed on the door, where anyone could walk in, even for how late it was.

"Should we go into the pool instead?" she asked, pulling back just enough, but still sitting on his lap.

His control was so close to snapping. He wanted to take her back to the room as she played these games with him. This time it was his own moan from deep in his throat that escaped as she palmed him on her way off his lap.

"I think it said it was eight feet deep," she said playfully, standing before him in the water. "We could have a diving contest."

He followed her as she walked out of the hot tub. His eyes were glued to her glimmering legs and waist, following each bead of water as it rolled down the curve of her ass as they walked over to the deep end pool.

He watched her dive into the water elegantly, hardly breaking the water or making a splash until she resurfaced a few moments later. "C'mon in," she smiled, relaxing on her back on the surface. "It's nice."

He dove in a few moments later, not nearly as gracefully as Katie. He resurfaced near her, pulling her to him and kissing her lips once he did.

She smiled against his lips as they parted. "How come I knew you'd do that," she whispered, touching his face.

"Because you know me so well," he winked, brushing her hand across her cheek.

"I guess I do," she said, kissing him again. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said against her lips. "Let's go back to the room."


	7. Chapter 7

"You wanna come over tomorrow night?" Ned's voice startled her on the drive home from the hotel.

Katie blinked and looked over at him for a moment. He was currently driving and focused on the road ahead of them. "Tomorrow is New Year's Eve," she said. "Don't you want to go out? I thought we were either going to the Mayor's party with my parents again or go to a bar or something."

Ned shrugged. "Eh. A loud party or bar with a bunch of drunks, or a This Is Us marathon with my girlfriend?" he said, smiling. "I choose the latter."

She nodded in agreement. "We have like half a season to catch up on!" She smiled excitedly, idly wondering if there was something making Ned want to stay in. She thought she was probably thinking too much into it, knowing Ned probably just want to spend as much alone time together as possible over this month she would be home for winter break. "That sounds perfect."

His smile turned into a grin, and she instantly grinned back. It's hard not to – Ned's cheeriness was annoyingly contagious.

"Explain to me again what we're doing today?" she asked, looking back at her phone. She was in the middle of playing her mom back in Words with Friends. She needed twenty-five points to gain the lead. "I wasn't paying attention during breakfast." She didn't really have good letters and she didn't have any special powers left.

Damnit. She played the word house somehow and got ten points.

He laughed and shook his head, turning his car on her parent's street. "Okay, one more time: your dad has to run into work for a quick thing and your mom is getting herself and Lana ready to go to the cabin with your dad, Aaron, and Mack. You didn't really say if you wanted to go."

"Okay… so that means we'd have the house to ourselves if we didn't go." She smirked at him as he shut her car off and gave her the keys. "Get my drift?"

He chuckled and ran his hand along his jaw. "I do," he nodded. "I'm glad I saved my vacation to take these two weeks off."

She leaned over the center console to wrap her arm around his. "Me too," she looked up at him.

He leaned down to press their lips together as someone knocked on the driver's side window. It startled them both and they looked over to see Delia.

Ned winked at her and slowly opened the door to get out as Katie sighed and leaned back into her seat. Of course.

They both got out of the car and Katie made her way around to lean into Ned, the cold air making her want a shield as they talked to Delia.

"Hey, I have a favor to ask of you two." Delia beamed excitedly. Katie couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Delia this excited. Except when Lana was born and she heard that her name was going to be the middle name. "I already convinced your mother and father to come, Katie. Would you and Ned be willing to come to my friend's new years party? Presuming you already don't have plans that is."

Katie looked over at Ned and she studied his face. He didn't look unpleased about the idea of the party. Maybe they would have a good time.

"What do you think?" She asked him, rubbing his chest through his jacket. "Wanna go?"

"Maybe we'll stop by," Ned nodded, looking back at his mom. "Katie and I'll have to talk about it. I'll give you a call later mom, okay? I'm spending the night here tonight."

"Oh, alright. I better get going. Hope to see you there," Delia said, going to her car.

He smiled and turned on his side, stretching his arm across her shoulders. "Well, I guess we'll have to go to that party– but I figure if it's really awful then we leave and just do our night as we planned."

Katie turned her head to look at him, debating in her head if she wanted to go. Parties were never that bad, and Delia said she'd talked her parents into going too. They could ride with them and not have to worry about driving. "Uh, sure, sounds like a plan."

"Great. It's a date, then." He smiled. "Let's get inside. It's freezing.

* * *

"Um, have I told you how gorgeous you look tonight?" Ned asked as he held the door open for her.

"About three million times now, yes," Katie replied, happy he can't see her blushing in the dim lighting of the restaurant. "Thank you."

He picked her up from her parent's house like he's done a million times, only this time he was speechless. It had happened before, and it never failed to make her blush like crazy.

She opened the door in nothing more than her strapless, little red dress and black heels. Her hair was up for the first time in forever, braided like her mother had helped her.

Katie had to clear her throat to get Ned to snap out of his trance, and she admitted to herself that seeing him slack-jawed and staring at her gave her a thrill.

"You cleaned up rather nicely, too," she told him, admiring the color of his red tie, and the way his crisp, white dress shirt hugged him in all the right places. "I'm glad you listened when I told you red."

"Why thank you," he said, smiling. "And again, we don't have to stay long. Your mom and dad will be there too, at least."

She nodded and took a breath, still unsure if she would actually have any fun. She's never been good at parties– that's always been Ned's thing. She's thinking hard as she followed Ned through the busy restaurant when the sight of one of Ned's ex-girlfriends from college that his mom had set him up with.

There stood Alyssa in a skin-tight sequined dress, and it made Katie stop in her tracks.

She couldn't stand her. Not one bit. Not even when Ned dated her and she was sixteen.

"Ned! So glad you could make it- oh…Hello, Katie," Alyssa said, her voice falling as she laid eyes on her. "Yes, so, servers have trays of hors-d'oeuvres and champagne everywhere, so help yourself. Ned, do you mind helping me over here for a moment with the desserts? I need your expert opinion."

"Uh, sure," Ned replied hesitantly, then gave Katie a small smile. "Be back in a minute, babe."

"Sure," she sighed, letting go of his hand at the last minute.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll be fine, Ned. I see her parents have arrived, anyway," Alyssa says, pointing at the door where her parents were as they walked in.

Katie waved to them but scowled when she turned back around and saw that Ned had left with that bitch.

Ugh. Katie couldn't stand that girl.

"Katie, you look beautiful! I am so glad you went with this dress instead of the other one." Melinda said, kissing her cheek as she came up beside her. "What's wrong?"

"Mom, this is pointless," Katie huffed, grabbing two flutes of champagne off the closest tray before the waiter had a chance to walk away from her. "Look who's here…"

She took a small sip at first, and then another greedy one when she saw Alyssa squeeze Ned's arm.

"Is that?" Melinda gasped and looked over at her daughter. "I have always hated that girl. She was so rude, all the time."

"Alyssa probably won't let him out of her sight all night," she groaned. "This was all Delia's plan, wasn't it? She knew she was going to be her and…"

"Katie, don't just to conclusions," Melinda said, slowly wrapping her arm around her waist. "I wouldn't put it past her though. I may have let it slip to her that you and Ned have been sleeping together for a while when she was interrogating me after you asked for the King room."

"MOM," she groaned, but it was more of a whine.

Katie really wanted to yell, but she knew that wasn't going to change anything.

Delia had gotten her revenge. Katie watched as Ned talked to his mother, Alyssa and Alyssa's mother.

"Honey, Delia was bound to find out about you two knocking boots eventually. She wouldn't stop asking questions," Melinda sighed, rubbing her back softly. "I'm sorry."

"It's not that, mom." She finished the last of her first champagne flute. "It's Alyssa and her bitchy attitude. I hate her."

"Wait – what's going on?" Her father asked as he came up behind them a bit late. "I was waiting to get our coats put away."

"Katie's having a crisis one second," Melinda said, ignoring her husband and waving him quiet. "Alyssa doesn't hold a candle to you, not in Ned's eyes and you know that." She pulled her daughter's chin over to look into her eyes. "I think there's more behind all of this. You need to talk to Ned and if you can't think of anything to say, maybe you could show him how you feel somehow."

"Show him how?" She asked

Katie wasn't catching her mom's drift. There wasn't much behind her anxiety right now except that it was Alyssa Callahan in the flesh.

Alyssa was the biggest bitch to her at Grandview High and still was one now, even at twenty-two.

"Seriously, what is going on?" Her dad repeated.

"Jim, I'll fill you in. Just go make fun at the dessert table," Melinda turned around, kissing him on the cheek.

"Oh, alright." He sighed and kissed his daughter's cheek on his way toward the table. "Don't let anyone get on your nerves, alright bug?"

She couldn't help but smile up at her dad and then looked back at her mom. "What should I do?" She asked.

"If you think you need to prove something to Ned then go ahead and do it," Melinda explained. "But you and I both know who Ned loves. Things may get difficult for you two, but in the end, he is with you and loves you."

"I know that," she sighed, rolling her eyes and wiping away the wetness around her eyes.

"Shhhh, he's coming back," Melinda smiled, pinching her cheek. "Don't be sad. Tonight will be fun, I promise."

Katie perked up and kissed Ned before he had the chance to say anything. He smiled, laughing against her lips as they parted. "Hey, Mel, where's Jim?" Ned said, looking over at the mother of his girlfriend. "Have either of you tried the crab cakes? SO good!"

* * *

Katie stood alone in a dark corner, her mother and father long gone to celebrate midnight from the comfort of their home. She watched from afar as Alyssa tried to feed Ned yet another mini-cupcake.

She doesn't blame him. He's managed to spend at least half of the night with her while he managed to lose Alyssa while she mingled. Otherwise, the bitch would request him for this or that, each time reminding him of how terrible he'd broken things off with her. And Ned, ever the man to make things right, had obliged every time.

She was just about to throw in the towel and find a way home when she noticed the host walk up to the hostess station. The girl looked just bored enough for Katie to fish a piece of paper out of her clutch somehow and walked up to the station.

In an instant, Katie knew what she had to do to sneak a chance to get her boyfriend out of this party.

"Do you have a pen I could borrow real quick?" She asked.

The girl handed it to her and she quickly wrote down everything she needed to say to Alyssa Callahan for the rest of her life.

_Ned's my boyfriend, not yours. You lost that chance long ago sweetie. Leave us alone, bitch._

Katie gave the pen back and folded the piece of paper. "Could you give this to Alyssa Callahan? She's at the party in here somewhere. Just call her up."

"Sure," the girl said happily.

Katie walked away, slipping through the crowd and around the dance floor.

Just then, over the intercom, she spoke. "Alyssa Callahan, please report to the hostess stand. Alyssa Callahan, you're needed at the hostess stand."

Katie nearly laughed, thinking her reading that note as she heard the announcement and saw Alyssa finally leave Ned, pout on her face. She watched as he looked around, scanning the restaurant.

He's looking for her. For her.

Their eyes connected, and his mouth dropped in a wide open smile…and all of her uncertainty washed away.

She took a deep breath and looked down at her hands before walking toward him.

"You're mad," he said.

"No," she said shaking her head, her eyes were glossed over with tears that hadn't spilled yet. She smiled at him softly. "Your mom wanted to make me mad. She knows we're sleeping together."

He nodded. "I figured. I'm sorry that she was here and I couldn't get away." He sighed and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Tonight must've sucked for you."

"Yeah, but I got my revenge on that bitchy ex of yours." She laughed and shook her head, then lifted her hands to run them through his hair, causing his green eyes to blink and widen.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I just told her your mine," she whispered.

And then, she kissed him. Twelve minutes before midnight, she kissed him. And he kissed her back.

They kissed through calls for champagne and people shuffling past them in their dark corner. They kissed through the sound of clicking heels approaching them.

"How dare you Katie Clancy!" Alyssa huffed. "You won't have him forever…"

Neither of them cared.

They almost laughed and Katie even flipped her the bird. She could feel him smile, but he only deepened the kiss, his hands grasping her face and moving into her hair. They somehow managed to ignore her loud, squeaky huff of an exit.

Even now, thirty seconds to midnight, they were still kissing. It's only when they heard the ten-second countdown begin that Ned 'pulled away. "Katie," he whispered.

Ten! Nine!

"Yes?" She whispered.

Eight! Seven!

"I'm happy I'm going into the new year with you," he said. "Not Alyssa."

Six! Five!

She smiled, so wide and bright up at him.

Four! Three!

"Me too," she said.

Two! One!

He grinned and kissed her gently before resting his forehead on hers. Chants of "Happy New Year!" surround them as his arms envelop her, and her hands came to rest on his chest.

"Can we go?" She asked.

"Yeah, in a minute," he nodded, leaning down to kiss her once more.

* * *

After a twenty minute sobering conversation with her mother about everything that had happened at the party once Melinda had left, Katie dragged Ned down the stairs to the basement and once they were finally alone, she smiled dumbly at him.

"You're spending the night, right?" She asked dropping her clutch on the floor.

"Yeah," he shrugged his jacket off, walking toward her.

A little desperate and still tipsy, she grabbed the collar of his shirt. She was tired of telling herself that she wasn't allowed to kiss him whenever she wanted to, that she couldn't touch him because of Delia or someone else. She was tired of not having his arms around her when she went to sleep. She was tired of not being able to see him all the time, but she knew they would get though it.

She didn't realize that she was crying and when she did, her salty tears wet their lips. His lips don't move, and she can feel her heart breaking in that instant. Then she sobbed in relief when he wrapped his arms around her. She opened her mouth first, and that was all the encouragement he needed.

His lips claimed hers. She put every emotion that she had ever felt for this boy, for this man, holding her right now into this kiss. She let go of his shirt, and her fingers find their way to his hair. His arms tightened around her, lifting her up against him. She opened her eyes, and she couldn't stop the happy tears when he was there looking back at her.

"Are you okay?" he whispered against her lips.

She kissed him briefly and said, "God, yes." She smiled at him. "I love you, so much, and I never want to hold anything back. I love you and don't care who knows or sees."

"Good," he breathed. "I feel the same way, Katie. I'm done playing this keepaway game for my mom. I love you and we're adults."

Yes. He was right. So right.

They were adults. Both of them, and they could do whatever the hell they wanted.

This time, she wrapped her legs around him when he kissed her. All of the worries she ever had about whether or not things between them would get better faded away. She was in his arms. Nothing else mattered.

This kiss made her feel things that she hadn't felt in so long. She felt like she was on fire. She just wanted him to touch her. She wanted him so bad.

He stumbled toward the bed, and they landed with a very ungraceful huff. Ned sat back and she loved the way he looked at her in these moments, how close they were and the way his eyes glazed over a little. He licked his lips as he gently fingers the hem of her dress, his hands smoothing up and over her hips and up her sides. His fingers skimmed around her back to her zipper, pulling it down and letting the dress slide down with his fingers too.

He smirked when he saw that she wasn't wearing a bra. "You went tonight, in this dress, without a bra?"

She flushed at his words. Then they started laughing together. "You couldn't tell?" She giggled, trying to cover herself.

His normally, light green eyes look like there was a storm brewing in them when he eased his shirt off. "I want to see you," he murmured, reaching out and lightly touching her waist. Goosebumps pebbled her skin as he skimmed the underside of her breast with the tips of his fingers. "I guess I didn't notice tonight… must not have been cold enough." Then, as if he couldn't stop himself, he traced over her nipple, making it harden under his touch. She laid back and smiled when he followed her. They looked into each other's eyes and he pressed another lingering kiss to her lips. "I just want to kiss you all over," he whispered.

"Then do it," she whispered against the hot skin of his neck.

He kissed her on the side of her neck, sucking at the skin there. She moaned as she felt him leave a mark. There was no way he didn't.

"I've wanted to do that for so long," he chuckled, moving up to nibble on her jaw and then on her ear.

He took her nipple in his mouth next and she gasped at the sensation. She found his hair again, and tried to pull him closer. Her hands never left his head as he traveled to her other breast. The sensation of him kissing her there made her want him in another place.

She tugged at his hair, and he smiled against her skin. "I'm getting there, sexy." He sat up, and took his shirt off. Through the years she had seen him shirtless many times. She had wanted to feel him since she was twelve, and now she could. She reached out and touched his stomach, and she smiled when he quivered under her fingers. Her touch lingered when she looked up to his face. This time, he's the one who claimed her hand and brought it to his lips.

He grinned at her and reached for her panties. He slid them off slowly, with a wiggle of her hips He touched her knee, and slides his hand all the way up her thigh. Her legs fell apart instinctively, and she wanted him to touch her there. She couldn't stop the moan when he did.

His fingers found her center, and she grabbed his other hand when he started to rub her, her eyes rolling back at the waves of pleasure washing over her. She grabbed his arm when he pushed his finger inside and pulled his finger back, licking her wetness off of it. She couldn't describe what she felt when he did that, she just knew that she wanted him to do it again. But he doesn't.

He moved up and laid down in between her legs. Before she could even think about what he was doing, he pressed his mouth to her.

Her back arched off of the bed, her hands fisting his hair. More waves of pleasure rolled through her as he flicked his tounge back and forth against her. Ned was so good. She ground her hips against him, moaning loudly.

"Yes, yes, yes," she chanted, feeling something coiling in her belly.

She couldn't help herself as she came. He was still gently licking her while she felt like a limp rag doll. He sat up on his heels, and pulled his belt lose from his pants and tugged them down with his boxers.

She admired him as he laid on top of her and kissed her deeply. She doesn't miss her scent on his lips, it made her laugh a little. He reached down in between them, and she gasped at his intrusion. Her nails dig into his shoulders when pushed into her. Slowly at first, he pumped in and out until she opened her legs trying to let him deeper on every push. Their lips met sloppily and she moaned, letting his tongue in to meet hers.

He exhaled through her hair as he continued to fill her completely. She'd never felt so good after an orgasm like that, and was caught off guard by the sensation.

She felt everything as he began moving in her, her body drawing him in deeper than she'd ever felt him. She held onto him, pressing her mouth against his skin to keep herself quiet.

"Ned, yes, god yes," she gasped, brushing her lips up against his neck and curling her hips toward him, trying to match his rhythm and meet his thrusts with her own.

It felt too good. He always made her feel good. She hiked her legs around his waist, clinging to him and whimpering quietly. He moaned softly against her neck, kissing her there, his breath catching in his throat and cutting the sound off.

"I'm gonna come," he gasped, lifting his head to look at her. "What about you?"

"I need a little more," she moaned, sealing their lips. "I'm so close, Ned."

He nodded against her, moving his hips quicker, deeper, and hitting that spot that she desperately needed him to.

Oh, good god. Yes.

He knew what to do, like she said. They came at the same time, their lips attached as they always were, and they stayed cuddled in a sweaty, heated mess together.

Happy, happy, new year.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: And just like that… winter break is over for Ned and Katie and they have to part ways again. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Two weeks later, Katie was at the local mini-mart, putting thirty bucks worth of gas in her car before she was going to get on the highway and leave Grandview for the new semester.

"I wish you didn't have to go," Ned sighed, walking over from where his truck was parked. "I wish it was still December and we had two weeks left."

"Me too," she sighed, keeping an eye on the dollar amount on the screen as it neared thirty dollars. "But it'll be summer before we know it. I know we haven't really talked about it but I'm thinking about transferring."

Katie stopped the pump at $30.03 and put it back for the next person as she put the gas cap back on and closed the little hatch. It was colder out than either of them had anticipated, and she was wearing her zip-up hoodie instead of a coat. Ned rushed inside with her.

"Why did you tell me sooner?" He asked.

"It's just been a thought, Ned," she said, going over to the coffee station. She went straight for the peppermint flavored mocha. It was her favorite thing about this gas station back home around the holidays. "My grant runs up at the end of this year, you've known that."

"Yeah," he shrugged, following her as they went to stand in line.

As she stood in line, she stared at the display of individually wrapped cookies near the cash register. All Katie had for food was a sad Lean Cuisine, so she grabbed a macadamia nut one, reasoning that she had a long drive ahead and she deserved a treat.

The man in front of her was arguing loudly with the older woman behind the counter, insisting that he had earned more off a gallon of gasoline than his member card was stating. Katie mentally rolled her eyes. This was going to take forever.

She leaned into Ned and he wrapped his arm around her. "You're not seriously getting a cookie from this place, right?" He asked as a lopsided smile formed on his face.

"I was thinking about it," she shrugged. "Why? Do I not need the calories?"

"No, I'd never say that. It's just word around town is the cookies are gross here." He explained quickly, shrugging. "Coffee's half decent and the gas is cheap, but always avoid the cookies."

"Well, well, look at you and knowing little things about Grandview." She put the cookie back reluctant, just in time to hear the enraged customer was demanding to speak with a manager.

Oy vey.

She was kind of hungry and definitely wanted that cookie. "What do you suggest I get then? I want a snack for the drive." She was impatiently tapping her foot now as the customer and cashier continued to argue. It turned out the cashier was the day manager too.

Ned looked around from where he stood beside her and grabbed a bag of gummy worms off the nearest shelf and gave them to her.

"Gummy worms," she shrugged and laughed. "Okay. I'll take 'em."

"I think I remember when you ate a whole pound one summer. You were like thirteen." He said.

"Totally worth the two cavities," she winked. "I wouldn't share with anyone."

"You shared with me," he whispered in her ear.

"Yeah, and you ate all of the green ones." She rolled her eyes. "You know how much I liked the green ones, Ned."

He couldn't contain his laughter. "Are we arguing about this?"

"Maybe," she smiled up at him. "I kind of wanted that cookie you know, and you came along and ruined everything."

He laughed. "I saved you from a bad cookie experience."

"Maybe I've acquired a taste for convenience store cookies," she said, taking a second glance at the basket.

"Oh, Katie," he sighed. "If that were true, I'd really feel sorry for you."

The gas guy was gone by now, so they both headed toward the register with her purchases. "Pump four," she said as she set the gummy worms and coffee on the counter. She dug through her wallet for some cash, and she heard Ned jovially tell that cashier that she didn't get paid enough to put up with jerks like that.

"Tell me about it," the girl sighed. "I almost called you over to put him in a headlock. It's so strange to see you out of uniform, Ned."

"I would have, too," Ned said with a grin as she paid for her gas and other stuff. She grabbed her snack and drink as Ned walked to the door and held it open. "Take care, Mrs. Seeder."

Katie watched as the cashier returned the sweet smile. "You too, Ned. I will."

"Do you know everyone?" she asked as they both exited the store.

"What?" He walked up to her car and opened the driver's side door. "I responded to a hold-up last month with her husband when they took everything in the register."

"I didn't realize," she shrugged. "You respond to a lot of cases. You don't tell me about all of them."

"I know," he said. "It's sometimes it's hard not to get to know the ones who are genuinely kind and didn't deserve what happened to them." They were stopped outside her car, and she set her coffee inside the cup holder and put her snack on the seat. "Well, maybe I'll come and see you next week when I have those two days off," he said, repeating himself from earlier.

"Yeah, maybe. Just keep in touch, okay?" She smiled and wrapped her arms around him.

"I will, Katie." He whispered into her hair, brushing back her hair to press a kiss to her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too, so much." She whispered and rose up on the balls of her feet to press their lips together

It was a brief goodbye kiss, and they both said goodbye, and she watched as he crossed the parking lot to get to his black truck before she got into her car and drove away.

* * *

Katie ended up deciding she wanted to major in English, not only did it give her a better variety of career options, but that's how she met Olivia. In her first Technical Writing class, their names were picked to be each other's peer editor.

The young, red headed woman gave Katie a tight, almost cruel smile when she slid into the seat next to her. "Gorgeous scarf," Olivia said.

Katie reached up to touch the dark green fringe hanging around her neck. It was one of Ned's Christmas gifts to her, in her favorite color and incredibly soft.

She smiled up at her, hoping the cheeriness would help Olivia come out of her shell. "Thanks. It's nice to meet you." She slowly opened her computer. "Should we get down to business?"

Olivia was surprisingly chatty while they worked on editing each other's first assignment. As Katie highlighted a run-on sentence, the girl prattled on about her bartending job and her bastard ex-boyfriend who led her to New York City from Kentucky only to dump her a few weeks later for some sorority chick.

She could tell Olivia was waiting impatiently for Katie to tell her a bit more about herself, but she's too busy concentrating on editing her paper to bother. "So where do you work?" The redhead finally asked outright.

"Um, at a little diner called Joe's Place. It's a few blocks away from my off-campus apartment which is only a few miles away." Katie's eyes were back on her laptop screen.

"You like it? I know serving can be hard," Olivia sighed. "My mom's always been a server."

Finally, Katie smiled and saved the document, tilting her screen down. "It's okay. I mean, the money's not too bad, but I don't want to work there forever."

Olivia tapped her pencil against her laptop. "So what do you want to do?"

"Not sure yet," Katie shrugged. "I think I might want to teach. You?"

"Eventually move back to somewhere close to home. I want to be a journalist, so I need to be where the people are, but I want to be close to home."

A journalist? Now there's an occupation Katie never considered. She was never good at writing non-fiction. Papers were one things, but the columns unit in her creative writing class had been the death of her.

"What?" Olivia asked defensively.

"Nothing," Katie says, returning to her work and tilting her computer up. "That's just not a career I would be interested in. I'm not good with non-fiction."

"Well, who the hell do you think informs everyone about the boring stuff?" Olivia laughed.

Katie tried not to roll her eyes, and the two didn't talk again until they're dismissed.

* * *

A couple of classes later, they began meeting in the library and before they started working on their papers, Olivia took notice to the photos that played on Katie's computer screen when it was idled. The redhead curiously peered at a photo of her and Ned.

"Who's this?" Olivia asked.

"My boyfriend," she said, writing a final note in her planner before closing it. "His name is Ned. We just celebrated our one year anniversary."

"Not bad," Olivia said with a wink. "I prefer them a little more tall, dark and dangerous myself."

"I'm sure you do." She rolled her eyes.

"Does he go here, too?" Olivia asked.

Katie shook her head and started flipping through her notebook, hoping Olivia will get the point and leave her alone about Ned. No such luck. When she looked up to find the redhead staring at her, waiting for something, she sighed and offering more info. "He lives in Grandview."

"Isn't that like three hours away?" Olivia rose an eyebrow. Katie stared at the next picture, which was of the two of them and Mackenzie over break. They were all in cozy pajamas on Christmas morning. "Who's the kid?"

"One of my little sisters," she said. "Mackenzie's nine."

"I'm an only child," Olivia doodled in the margin of her notebook.

"I'm the oldest of four. One brother, two sisters." She waited for the picture to change, knowing the next one was a family shot. It was one from this Christmas, their usual family shot in front of the tree. "See? That's my-"

"Your mom, yeah, I can tell." Olivia giggled a little. "Your dad is a fox. I'm not usually a fan of salt and pepper, but your dad makes it look good."

Katie couldn't contain her laughter. Her dad was a total fox. She knew that, especially considering most of the girls in her school had crushes on him. "I'll tell him that," she snickered. "Whenever I got home next…"

"That's gotta be hard on you and your boyfriend though," Olivia said. "I thought it would make things better if I brought my ex with and look how that turned out."

Katie looked at another picture of her and Ned from this summer, trying to keep Olivia's negative energy out of hers.

She missed her boyfriend like crazy, but it's getting easier with time. It helped for them both to have something of some to work toward and focus on. It made the time apart go by faster.

"Yeah, it is definitely one of the hardest decisions I've ever made. But we're managing." She explained, smiling.

The redhead snorted. "Good luck with that."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Katie snapped back, furrowing her brow and looking over at her

It's safe to say that Olivia hit a sore spot.

Katie knew that long distance relationships were hard, but she loved Ned. They weren't just going to be another couple that broke up because things got hard. They cared for each other and were going to fight for each other.

Olivia's carefully crafted mask of indifference slipped only for a second at Katie's anger, but the girl recovered quickly. "Long distance? At our age, you're kidding yourself Katie."

"You don't know anything about us," she said evenly, making it clear that her relationship was not up for discussion.

To her surprise, Olivia backed off and they started editing each other's papers.

Later, the redhead asked, "So are you coming over to watch a movie tonight?"

Like she had mentioned it earlier. Like they were even really friends. They'd never hung out outside of school. They hadn't even exchanged phone numbers.

But Katie had the distinct feeling that Olivia doesn't have anyone else to watch movies with, ever, so she agreed, now just hoping that it's not some film with elves or ewoks.

"A Star is Born," Olivia announced later when they're in her tiny dorm room. Katie hadn't been to one at NYU, but it was nicer than the ones she'd been in at Rockland back home.

She'd heard of the movie but never saw it before. "Is it cheesy?" she asked. Not that she'd mind, though she preferred a good dramatic romance movie with a good soundtrack.

"Are you kidding," Olivia gasped. "This is one of the greatest movies made in the last ten years. Also, Lady Gaga is a queen and Bradley Cooper has the best ass you'll ever see. You're welcome in advance."

At the bath scene, Olivia elbowed Katie in the side. "Right?"

"Not bad," She agreed. She can't hide a little pride in her voice when she added, "But I've seen better."

"I kind of want to meet your boyfriend now," Olivia tossed popcorn in her mouth.

Katie snickered and grabbed a handful. "Not a chance, Liv."

* * *

It was almost Valentines Day when Katie caught a phone call from Ned on her way home from work. She had just pulled into her parking spot by her complex when she saw that it was her boyfriend who was calling.

She was happy to see he was calling her for a change. It was hard to keep in contact these days. THey texted, but that wasn't the same as calling or video chatting.

They hadn't seen each other since Katie left after winter break. They'd both been busy and talked when they could.

"Hey," she said cheerfully, pressing her phone to her ear as she grabbed her backpack and keys and got out of her car. "I'm just getting out of my car, hold on."

"I hope I didn't call at a bad time," he said softly.

"Not at all," she said, leaning against her car. "I'm just getting home, why? Is there something you need to talk about?"

"Not really," he said and she moved to go walk across the street but a few cars buzzed by. "I'm just calling because I missed you, which is why I'm in the city."

"You are? Where?" She asked, looking around just in case he was really close.

"Why don't you look and see?" She laughed as she heard him hang up and walked across the street to see him open the apartment complex door. "Miss me?"

"Of course," she smiled and hugged him. "It's been a whole month."

"Don't remind me," he sighed as they walked inside and toward the elevator. "How are things at school?"

"Good. I was just with Olivia at the library. We got a lot done on our term paper. Not nearly finished, but close." She shrugged and stepped inside the elevator as the doors opened. "Hopefully I'll finish what I need to tomorrow."

"So I did catch you at a bad time," he said, looking over at her.

"I've always had a lot of homework, Ned. I think I can handle boyfriend distraction…" She smiled at him and laid her head on his shoulder. "The paper isn't even due until the end of the month. We've just got a head start."

* * *

They're in her bed, spooning contentedly. The warm, post-orgasmic blissful feeling was slowly overtaking Katie, and though her eyes are heavy with sleep, Ned's fingers tracing circles along her bare stomach kept her awake. But it tickled when his hand ghosted over her ribs, and she foolishly alerted him to the fact when she squealed.

"Same old sweet spot, huh?" he asked gruffly, then repeated the move, earning a childish giggle from her she squirmed away from him.

She pushed her back against his chest, kicking her feet out to try and move away from his fingers as he continued to tickle her. But he pinned her easily, moving on top of her body and holding her hands over her head as he hovered above her.

She held her breath as they faced each other, "hey," she sputtered, laughing. "you remember that?"

He nodded and leaned down to kiss her briefly. "Of course," he said, tickling her more. "How could I forget your squirm spot?"

She remembered the time a few years ago when he started tickling her like this at the cabin, and she laughed so hard she nearly peed her pants.

She tried again to push him off of her, but it's of no use.

"Did you forget that I took second-place at the state wrestling match, junior year?" he asked as she tried to wiggle out from underneath him. She can't stop giggling as they continued to wrestle playfully, and they only stop when, smiling, he said, "I think I'm gonna make detective this month. Jamison said something..."

"What?" she pushed him away and sat up, her back against his headboard. Dropping bombs like that out of nowhere was a signature move that she did and Katie doesn't like it when the tables are turned. "You really think so?"

Ugh, she was so excited for him. Ned deserved this so much, after how hard he'd worked to get into the academy and then prove himself when he got his badge. And that's exactly why she loved him.

"Jamison thinks so," he said, shrugging.

He was so excited when he got in, she remembered. "I'm so proud of you," she told him happily. "You have so well these past few years."

"Because of you," he said softly. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

She hugged him tightly, no longer wanting to move an inch away from him. "What about your work? Or your friends?" She reasoned. She's definitely heard that somewhere.

"God, I hope not," he said, laughing. He leaned in to nuzzle his nose against her cheek. "That'll come later. I want something to look forward to."

With her?

The words went unspoken, but they still hung heavy in the air.

She wanted that, too, really. So much.

"We're going to be okay, Ned," she promised him. "We love each other, and that'll get us through this year." She knew it sounded like she's trying to convince herself as well as him.

She was.

"I know," he said. "We've been doing better good so far. A few bumps… but they've smoothed over."

He rolled over and she snuggled into him. Relief wanted to seep in and settle down to stay, but she had to be cautious first. "You're not just saying that, right?" She sat up to look at him, the bed sheet falling away from her body and exposing her breasts. She doesn't even notice that anymore; it's strange how comfortable she felt with him.

"No, of course not," he promised, reaching out to run his fingers through the ends of her hair. "But I mean, wish you'd come home more, but that's not a total bad thing. I know you need your space from Grandview."

All she wanted was to believe him, but she knew he was just saying that to make her feel better. He wanted her in Grandview now, but was settling on waiting until the end of her school year. She wanted to block out the voices of her self-conscious who said they're too naïve to talk like this or think like this or feel like this.

"I don't think it's a bad thing, either," she admitted, and she settled in against him, her ear against his heart, which she's sure was beating just for her. He loved her with everything he had, with everything he was. "We get to be alone here… no one to bother us."

"See, you always have the positives," he grinned into her forehead, pressing a kiss there. "I love you, Katie. So much."

"I love you," she whispered.

It should scare her, really. But it's not the intensity of love that worried her. It's the world's cold cynicism toward it; the idea that one day his feelings will change as they all inevitably do, that falling too hard and too fast at their ages have somehow already sealed their fate.

Well, she won't have that. She won't allow it.

They were going to be okay.

She closed her eyes and enjoyed what time they had together.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Katie's headed home and Ned's getting a promotion... Big steps for Ned in this chapter. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

"So what are you doing this weekend?" Olivia asked in the library.

It was a week later, a Thursday, and Katie and Olivia were working on some last minute edits before the library closed for the night.

Katie had a surprising four day weekend ahead of her and thought it would be best to get some homework done before she left. After her morning classes tomorrow, she would leave for Grandview, but she guessed she hadn't told her newish friend that.

She doesn't look up as she put her computer and notebook into her backpack. "I'm actually headed home this weekend," she explained. "My boyfriend got promoted on the police force and the ceremony is on Saturday. Plus our families are throwing him a big party." As she's zipping her backpack up, she caught Olivia worrying her bottom lip.

"Parties are fun," the redhead shrugged. "Is your roommate coming with too? Didn't you say she was from your hometown?"

"Yeah, probably. She's been my best friend since we were little kids." She sighed. "Liv, would you like to come with us for the party?" She tried really hard to not sound too put out by the thought, and she hoped she succeeded.

"Eh, why not." Olivia shrugged."I don't have anything better to do."

The next day, Hannah and Katie met outside their apartment complex, each with their bags in hand as she opened her trunk. She had filled her in on Olivia tagging alone and pulled out her phone as she pushed her bag in the trunk, checking to see where she was.

Olivia's last message said:  _Almost here. Half a block away_

"This is Hannah?" Olivia gaped. "I was picturing some young, skinny chick with frizzy hair like you Katie, not…this blonde beauty."

"Katie," Hannah told her, even though her eyes are still on Olivia. "You didn't tell me she was awesome. She can tell by the way they're looking at each other that they'll probably become friends, and she wasn't wrong. By the time Katie took the exit to get to Grandview they were talking about Olivia's annoying ex who broke up with her when they got to New York.

"Tell me everything about stupid Garrett," Hannah scoffed, elbowing her as she slowly stopped at the stop sign after the exit. "Then we can get Katie to spill about her two terrible exes."

"Um, Katie's never mentioned anything about horrible exes. Just some boyfriend named Ned. What's your opinion on him?" Olivia turned to Hannah. "Completely honest."

"Hannah," Katie warned, narrowing her eyes, annoyed as she turned onto the country road that would lead them into Grandview.

"I mean, they have a long history together." Hannah sighed, looking over at the redhead. "He used to be the biggest jerk, but he's gotten better I guess. I don't quite trust him completely, but Katie does. I think I will soon. He's just hurt her too much in the past for me to forgive him. Best friends get to hold grudges."

Hannah winked at her and Katie shook her head laughing. "Yeah, I guess you can hold the grudges for me." She sighed. "He was a total jerk when we were younger."

"How is he in the sack?" Olivia scooted up to the edge of the seat to look at Katie.

She rolled her eyes. "Not telling," she laughed.

Olivia screeched indignantly and dropped back into her seat. "C'mon Katie!" The redhead ignored Katie's widened eyes and continued. "I'll tell you about my ex. He was okay when we were both in the right mood. So you've gotta give me a few details."

She tried desperately to block out that mental image. Of course, Katie couldn't tell Olivia about that stuff. They barely knew each other. It wasn't like she was Hannah, who'd she'd known forever. The first person she let see her at her best and worst.

"Not everybody just wants to talk about their sex life, you know." She muttered, squeezing her steering wheel. That probably wasn't the best choice of words.

Olivia immediately looked defensive, like she's bracing for judgment or ridicule. "You think I'm a slut because I talk about my sex life, don't you?"

"No," Katie answered, simply and honestly. "I just kind of think you're a bitch and too pushy sometimes."

Olivia grinned, but Katie's mind was on driving. "Whatever, Katie. You don't have to tell me."

She saw the twinkle of the town lights. She was almost home.

She's never wanted to be there more in her entire life, especially when things were good in the city, but Olivia was making her irritated and want to get the hell out of her car.

"You know, I guess I could spill a little." She said, slowing down to a stop at another stop sign. "Ned's the only guy to make me come every single time. Even if he's only the second guy I've ever been with."

"I mean at least he's good, even if he's only your second. Don't you want to get more experience before you settle down?" Olivia asked.

"Why would I?" She asked.

"Well, do you only get one plate at the buffet?" Olivia giggled.

The made her think about Ned, even if things were good. Which they were with him.

But what about Ned? Would he ever start to wonder about other women?

He was a man, after all. Ned Banks was the elusive playboy at one point in his life.

"Hey," Olivia said, surprisingly gentle. "Don't worry about it, okay? If it's a good dick, and I get the distinct impression from you that it is, you'll be fine."

Katie tried not to laugh as she kept driving. Olivia was right, about that last thing, she knew that better than anyone.

She should know better than to worry about Ned or his feelings, right?

* * *

Katie brought in the empty appetizer tray into the kitchen for her dad to reload with cheese puffs and chicken bites.

They were a hit and going quickly. Her mom had told her to keep an eye on them and reluctantly, she did.

"I didn't realize I was playing the hostess tonight," she muttered and tossed one of the chicken bites into her mouth. "I could've stayed in the city for that and made tips, you know."

"Here I'll tip you," her dad chuckled and pulled out a five. "Does that make you feel better?"

She snagged it before he could put it away. "A little," she said, taking the tray she'd brought in and another one that he'd prepared. "Mom is looking for you by the way."

Katie walked through the dining room where the desserts were set out and people were milling amongst. She swerved around, watching as a few people snagged what they could as she walked by. She set down the appetizers and took a few cheese puffs before she walked over to Ned, who was taking a drink of his beer.

She walked into his open arms, as one rose with his beer bottle. "Hey!" He said as he swallowed and wiped his face. "Where'd you go?"

"To refill the appetizers per my mom's request," she said, wrapping her arm around him as she placed her head on his chest. "Wanna sneak out for a minute with me?"

He licked his lips as they grin into a grin. "Yeah," he said, leading her through the crowd

There were a few people milling in the foyer and they quickly slipped upstairs where it was quiet.

To Katie's knowledge, Lana was long put to bed, she was pretty sure that Aaron was probably in the garage drinking with his friend Luke, Mackenzie was watching a movie on her laptop in the basement, and her parents were downstairs.

She didn't know where they were gonna go.

"Where are we gonna go?" She asked Ned when she couldn't think of anything. "I'm definitely not messing around on any bed up here." She shook her head immediately and he agreed.

"I'll see if the bathroom is empty," he said, going up to the door of the closest bathroom. "Anyone in here?" When he heard someone mumble something on the other end he practically ran over to her. "Crap, I think someone is in there."

She laughed and kissed him as he came back.

This would get him to forget about that, and buy them some time until the bathroom was open.

God, this was so good. His tongue, in her mouth. His weight pushing her into the wall as they kissed. His hands moved across her neck and down her sides until they both grasped her ass.

Perfect. Just perfect.

She heard the bathroom door swing open with a familiar laugh and click of heels. Oh shit. It was Olivia.

"Hide me," she whispered, turning her head. "I'm pretty sure Liv already saw me."

"Katie, is this that stud of a boyfriend you were telling me about?" Olivia called out, clearing her throat.

She tapped his chest lightly and he swung to the side, his arm around her. She tried not to let her face flush, but by Olivia's reaction, she knew it had. "Yes, this is Ned. Ned, this is Olivia.." she introduced them quickly." You know my study partner I was telling you about before."

"Yes, it's nice to finally put a face to a name." Ned smiled, holding out his hand to her. "Did you drive in with Katie and Hannah then?"

"Yes, it was a fun drive the three of us!" Olivia smiled, hugging her. "It's nice to finally meet you." She winked at her. "He's so much cuter in person, you know. You should've warned me. But I'll leave you two be."

"Nice to see you, Liv." She sighed, looking over him and shaking her head. "God, let's get in the bathroom before anyone else talks to us."

He laughed and practically pulled her into the small room, closing and locking the door before he claimed her as his, again.

* * *

Melinda had taken one look at Katie the night after the party and declared that she needed a night of pampering.

After dinner, Katie soaked in the tub for an indecent amount of time per her mother's stern request. She lit candles, played some soft music and slid into the hot water. The water eased her aching muscles, sore from hours on her feet long hours at the diner and walking around campus, and the lavender bath salts her mother gave her relaxed her so much that she nearly fell asleep in the water.

Afterward, she let her hair air-dry while her mom filed her nails on her bed. Mackenzie was trying to pick a color for her toes. Her dad was working late and Olivia had gone to a party with Hannah. Aaron was out with his girlfriend Lucy and Lana was long asleep.

"What about this one?" her sister asked hopefully, holding up a bottle of pale pink lacquer.

"It's kind of babyish, don't you think?" she said and then pointed to a green one for her sister. "Will you grab me a dark blue one?"

"I guess green would look good for me," Mackenzie shrugged slowly and handed her the polish she asked for. "Here's the blue."

"So how are things with Ned?" Melinda asked, taking the color as she finished filing her fingernails. "I know you two look happy, but you always do around everyone."

"We're doing better," she explained, smiling as her mother began to apply to the color to her nails. "We haven't been able to see each other very much since winter break, but we're texting a lot and calling when we have time."

"That's good," Melinda said, moving to the next finger. "I'm glad you two are working things out. Are your hours at the diner getting better?"

Katie groaned. No. They weren't. "I only got fourteen hours next week," she muttered. "I don't know what I'm gonna do."

She wasn't asking for money. She wasn't, but Katie knew her mom or dad would help her out no matter what if she let her know she was worried about her bills. About anything, ever.

"I can talk to your dad if you need some help, bug." Melinda reminded her.

"Would you?" She whispered, looking up at her slowly.

"Yes," Melinda winked and then continued to paint her nails. "So anything new you want to tell me about?"

They continued talking about school, Olivia and so many papers. That was the downside to an English major. Once her mom finished applying a coat of clear polish, she started on Mackenzie's and after both of theirs were dry, Katie stood up from the bed.

She stretched and looked at her nails. Her mom always did a good job. "Thanks, mom for doing all of this for me," she hugged her. "I really needed it. I love you."

"Of course, baby. A mother knows." Melinda kissed her cheek as she hugged her, rubbing her side. "Are you off to bed?"

She nodded slowly, rubbing her eyes. "Yeah. I'm pretty tired," she whispered and made her way to the door. "Plus Ned's getting off work soon. He's coming over."

"Wait, we're gonna read a chapter of Great Gatsby," Mackenzie called out eagerly. "You should stay!"

"Not tonight," she yawned and blew them each a kiss as she opened the bedroom door. "Maybe next time, Kenz. I'm glad I did nails with you though. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Katie," Mackenzie waved and dived to grab the book. "Love you."

"Night sweetheart," Melinda blew another kiss to her as she pulled the door closed.

* * *

Ned Banks was in love with Katie Clancy, and everything new he'd learned about her in the past fourteen months they've shared together.

It started after months and months of tension and flirtations. It quickly developed into seeing each other every almost every night during her winter break her freshman year. They practically lived together for her summer vacation that year. When she'd gone back to the city for her sophomore year things had grown cold for a bit, but we're warming up again. Ned was so ready to make her a permanent fixture in his life.

He loved her.

The complicated distance between them had left things lopsided as of late. They both want different things, or at least that's what they keep saying. Katie wanted to leave the city, she did. Deep down though, Ned knew that all she really wanted was to find the right place to settle down. And right now, she didn't know if that was Grandview anymore.

That bummed him out, but he wanted to be with Katie and if that meant giving up some wistful dreams of a perfect life in Grandview than so be it. All he really needs was her to be truly happy. He told himself that every time they argue about something small and unimportant.

Some days though, he wondered if he was losing bits and pieces of himself by altering his needs to fit hers. Or maybe he was forcing her to lose those precious parts of herself. He couldn't ever decide which was which. He just knew they are floundering in this purgatory between relationship hell and the sappy stage where they were blissfully content with each other.

Even living so far away, each time day they call each other, no matter how hard work or life had been, they made time for each other. And every so often he would get a weekend off, like the one after his detective's ceremony.

He'd picked her up from work and took the elevator up to her apartment. Folded between the downy comforter and soft sheets on her old mattress, they rolled up into a mesh of human flesh, bone, and heartache. He pressed kisses into her shoulders and she ran her nimble fingers along his spine. In those moments they were closer to bliss than to losing themselves.

* * *

The night the first body was found was on the eve of Melinda's birthday, Katie was in town and he was in the basement with her. Ned was pressed against her warmth in the darkness feeling her heartbeat against his chest.

She groaned against him at the sudden sound of his phone. He sighed and glanced over at the dresser. His phone buzzed and shook across the top of it, white light spreading above it in the blackness. Katie pulled away as he sat up and uncovered himself.

His feet pad lightly across the wooden floor, his gait still drunk from sleep. He ran his right hand over his face, rubbing at his crusty eyes and grabbed at the phone with his left. A quick glance before he answered told him it was his partner Jamison calling.

His eyes shift to the alarm clock, quarter after one, and he pressed the phone to his face with a groggy "hello?"

"Ned?" Jamison always asked this when he answered, as though someone else would be checking his cell phone for him.

"Yeah, it's me. What's up? It's past one, you alright?" Ned cleared his throat and glanced at Katie. She had rolled over onto her stomach and pulled her pillow over her head. "I'm with my girlfriend and it's my weekend off. This better be good."

He closed the bathroom door behind him to let her sleep and turned the light on, rubbing his eyes to adjust quicker.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just got a call from the precinct. They found a body off Mill Creek Road and want both us over there ASAP," Jamison's voice was clogged with sleep too. He can just barely hear him rustling around, likely juggling the phone as he slipped into his clothes.

"Mill Creek Road you said? Is it John Henry? Did the old drunk finally fall in the creek and drown?" He asked.

He almost was excited. This was his first murder case. His first real shot to make a name for himself.

Damnit. He hated himself for being a little excited. Someone had died. That was anything to celebrate.

His mind was back to to the case. Was it John Henry?

They were always picking him up downtown and dropping him off back home, no sense in arresting him anymore, he's a harmless drunk and not too big of a public nuisance. They pick him up for his own safety more than anything now. Makes the precinct look good and keeps those Sunday ladies happy to have him off the street – get him out of sight and safe, that's what the chief always said.

"No. It's a woman, some kids makin' out in the woods found her. I know you had the night off, but Sam got off early for the night, his sister went into labor. I'll meet you out there." Jamison hung up without a goodbye, a typical end to their conversations.

Ned sighed, a body of a woman in the woods. It sounded like foul play. Grandview hasn't had a murder in a while. Almost six months.

It was going to be a long night. A long week.

Ned flipped the light off in the bathroom and slipped back out into the room. He quickly grabbed his pants and shirt, pulling them on. He crouched down to press a kiss to Katie's cheek. "Hey sleeping beauty, I got called in." He whispered.

Katie groaned, not happy to have her beauty sleep interrupted. "Why?" She rubbed her eyes as she lifted her head slightly, laying it on top of her pillow. "What happened? This better be a dire situation."

"There's a body down by Mill Creek Road," he said. "I have to go."

She nodded slowly and leaned up to kiss him. "Be careful. I'll be right here waiting for you," she whispered against his lips, kissing them again before she laid back down.

"I don't know when I'll be back," he said softly. "Should be back before dawn though." He turned to go and headed up the stairs quickly.

He needed to get a cup of coffee on if he's going to be awake enough for this.

He glanced at the clock on the microwave as the pot started bubbling. The light turned on and he turned to see Melinda, the mother of his girlfriend rubbing her eyes.

"What are you doing up?" He asked, looking over as the coffee begun to drip into the glass pot. "I guess since it's past midnight, happy birthday."

"I could ask you the same, and don't remind me that I'm forty-four, Ned." The mother yawned and walked toward him. "I couldn't sleep and Jim has to be up early. I keep hearing rushing water every time I close my eyes. I don't know why."

"Rushing water?" He stretched as well, feeling his body set into place. "I think I might have an answer for you. There was a woman's body found down by Mill Creek Road. Some kids were fooling around in the woods and stumbled upon it. I got called in."

"Oh, that explains the rushing water…" Melinda bit her lip and grabbed Ned a thermos and handed it to him. "Keep me updated?"

"Of course, I will. It was probably a body dump, so keep me updated if she makes any appearances." He said and took the thermos from her as he grabbed the full coffee pot.

He filled it quickly and pressed a kiss to her cheek on his way past her. He grabbed his coat and slipped his shoes on.

Mill Creek Road was only ten or so miles from the Clancy house, so it didn't take long to get there. Ned found the area already lit with stage lamps and quartered off in police tape. He spotted Jamison and the new chief, Josh LeTrai, standing near one of the other squad cars. Jamison looked tense, never a good sign.

As he got out of the car, his partner glanced over and he could only slightly see the rigidity in his expression. A sinking feeling settled in Ned's chest. He nodded to the men as they rose the tape for him to bend under, seeing his badge on his belt.

He could see that the rookies were setting up roadblocks and catering to the forensic team, a group of two measly lab workers from the neighboring county.

"Chief," Ned greeted as he settled next to Jamison. He nodded to his partner and glanced over his expression again. Something was definitely off. Jamison was a hardened detective. He'd worked the force since before Ned was even born. He barely reacted to much when he's at work, always down to business and straight-laced.

"Banks, we've got something big here. I need you and Jamison to run through this with fine tooth combs. It ain't pretty and I understand you know the victim, but we need separation here." Ned paused as Chief LeTrai spoke to him. He hadn't known much about the case until now.

Did he know the victim? Who was it?

"I need clear heads, got it?" Chief LeTrai was a rough yet sensible man and knew what he was doing on the job.

Ned glanced at Jamison before he nodded, "Certainly sir. I will be clear and level-headed."

"Good, well I'll leave you both to it then; I want full reports to come later today. This is going to blow-up in the newspaper and gossip is going to be all around. We should probably give a press conference later on today," LeTrai advised. He walks away toward some of the other officers.

Jamison cleared his throat and looked down at his fist on the hood of the cruiser; he tapped it once, twice, before he looked up at him again. "It's that ex of yours. Alyssa."

And that's all he said. It's enough to make Ned's insides turn to fire. He didn't like Alyssa that much, especially not after the new year's party, but she didn't deserve this.

Ned had loved her once. He'd loved her a lot, even if he'd ended things. He wished he'd told Alyssa the real reason why. Maybe he'd get another chance, but he didn't know if he could put Katie through that. If Alyssa's spirit was even still earthbound.

He walked down the hillside, hands in his pockets and could see her from where he stood. Her wrists and ankles were bound with rope. Her usually long, blonde hair was chopped to her shoulders and he could see these huge circles bruised down her spine.

He was going to be sick.

Who would do this to her?


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Ahh... this chapter really is the beginning of the hard, tough times ahead for Katie and Ned. I didn't originally plan for the first victim of the case to be Alyssa, but then it had to be. I hope you enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Ned crawled back into bed around eight that morning, just as Katie was waking up. She didn't have to be up but was used to being up at this time for her usual routine. She tossed onto her side and ran her hand up her boyfriend's side. She leaned into his chest and wrapped her arms around him.

She knew he had had a long night. It was barely two when he'd gotten called into a crime scene.

A body was found by Mill Creek Road. This was his first, real case. A possible murder even.

She wondered what was going through his head. How was he handling this new responsibility?

"You're back," she whispered softly, turning her head up to lean into his neck.

He merely nodded, resting his chin on top of her head. "Yeah," he whispered. "I'm back."

This case was different. She could already tell.

She ran her hands up his arms and around to the top of his shoulders lightly. "Are you okay?" she asked, pressing a kiss to his throat.

He stretched, settling into bed a little as he sighed. "Yeah, I'm okay." He paused and swallowed. "It was Alyssa."

She rose her head to look at him. She didn't know what to say. She hated Alyssa because of a petty high school drama, but he didn't.

Ned didn't have a reason to. He'd dated the girl for almost a year and a half. They'd broke up just before she graduated high school. She never really knew why besides that he broke things off and didn't care to get more details now that they were together, especially not now that the girl was dead.

"Oh, Ned…" She wrapped her hand around his, where it rested on top of his chest. She pressed a kiss to each of his knuckles lightly. "I'm really sorry," she whispered, cupping his face.

"Don't be," he shook his head. "It shouldn't have got to me as much as it did."

"Of course it would. You're kind and you care about people, Ned, and you loved her once. You don't have to pretend like you didn't, to make me feel better," she sighed, leaning up to kiss his lips time.

It's sudden and soft, and his hands were warm as they cradled her face. He was hesitant, the darkness of tonight dragging him down. She tilted her head instead, slanted her lips over his, sneaking her tongue into his mouth.

She thought this might help. After everything, wouldn't this help him? Her thoughts were jumbled. He did things to her, made her feel so things.

Her hands fumbled when she tried to discard his shirt, her shirt caught on her hair, and their laughter was breathless. She slid her hands across his chest, scraping her nails against his nipples, and he kissed and bit and licked her throat.

This was good. So good.

He nuzzled her breasts; she arched into him. She can't keep her eyes open when he trailed hot, open-mouthed kisses along her thighs. She fisted her hands in his hair as he used his tongue and his teeth and his fingers, and the sharpest pleasure swept through her.

She couldn't think. Everything was warm and she felt her orgasm crash over her. Ned was too good.

He kissed her cheek, and she whispered in his ear. "That was supposed to be for you to get off on. Not me, you know." His laughter was cheeky when she hit him, and his eyes were soft when he kissed her again.

"What about we go again?" He asked, smirking.

"I think we should go see if whatever breakfast my dad is making is ready. I smell bacon," she whispered, tapping lightly on his chest before she slid out of bed with a kiss to his lips and cheek. "Maybe later."

She grabbed a pair of leggings off the floor that she'd discarded on her way to bed, and pulled them on before she went upstairs. Ned was a little slow to get up and she waited, reluctantly as she craned her neck to hear her dad talking on the phone to someone at the hospital.

Something about budgeting. Too mathematical for her to listen anymore and she looked back at Ned as he walked up to her.

"Took you long enough," she said, grabbing his hand on her way up the stairs. "Do you have to be at work?"

"For a briefing and to check some labs around eleven," he nodded. "But that's all."

"Okay. I'm gonna go and get a pedicure with mom for her birthday, maybe we can go do something?" She asked, opening the door and stepping up. "We haven't gone out and done something together in a while."

He smiled, one that reached his eyes. "Yeah, that would be nice." He squeezed her hand as they walked up into the kitchen.

Her dad was making eggs, bacon, and pancakes according to the stovetop and several plates on the island. But no one looked to be up.

It was only eight thirty and a Saturday, so it wasn't unusual for her siblings to still be asleep.

"Hey dad, is everyone still asleep?" Katie asked, walking around him and opening the fridge. She grabbed the orange juice out. "I was hoping mom would be up."

"Your mom is up. She's helping Lana get dressed, then she should be down. Not sure about Mack or Aaron." Her dad smiled but grimaced as she took a sip from the jug. "Oh, Katie. Don't do that. You're just like your mom."

"You do it with the milk," she laughed and rolled her eyes as she put the cap on and gave it to him before Jim could say anything else.

Ned had found himself a seat on the island and was quietly looking at his phone. Jim looked over at her. That was definitely strange.

She shrugged. She hadn't gotten much out of Ned this morning. Maybe her dad could get more out than she did.

"Pretty quiet there this morning, Ned. I heard there was a body out found off the county road," her dad said, going back toward the stove to flip the pancake on the skillet. He moved around the scrambled eggs and moved to put them on the serving plate and sprinkle cheese on top.

He yawned, stretching his arms and hearing his body set into place. "Yeah. It was pretty gruesome," he said quietly. "I shouldn't talk about it though. Not yet. Once the press release is out this afternoon we can talk."

Jim nodded, understanding as the doorbell rang. "Hey, can you get that?"

Katie was watching Ned as he went about to answer the door and she started to brew a pot of fresh coffee. She poured out the remnants of what must be from Ned when he left this morning and washed it out.

She heard the door open and Ned cleared his throat as he called out. She turned around and at first, she didn't see anyone, but when her boyfriend's head move just slightly she saw that shimmer of Alyssa's face and turned around before she could see her.

Damnit. This was going to make things more difficult.

* * *

Mrs. Callahan was hysterical when she came into the precinct. She had to provide a proper ID of her daughter's body. She was halfway across the floor toward the front door when she started to sob again.

Turning swiftly, Ned slipped away from the tactical table where most of the detectives were all talking about any leads amongst themselves.

"Mrs. Callahan," he said softly. "Do you need me to give you a lift home?"

"Oh, Ned. It's you." The mother whispered. "It's nice to know someone who cares is working Lyssa's case."

He nodded. "C'mon, I'll give you a ride home. One of the other officers can drive your car home later for you." He glanced back at Jamison and the few others who'd looked his way and nodded to them. "I'll be right back."

Ned was trying his hardest to not tear up when he brought Mrs. Callahan up to the door. He drove back o the station slowly, letting his resolve break just enough to let a few tears out before he parked outside the precinct. He grabbed the eyedrops that he had and dropped a few in each eye before he go out. It had only been fifteen minutes and came back to the tactical table.

As he drew closer, Chief LeTrai turned to him. "Banks, good. You're back." The man pushed his hand through rumpled hair then stated, "We've got another body. Don't expect to find much of anything if the other two are anything to go by. This guy didn't make any mistakes last time. We can't make any either."

Everyone gave LeTrai a sympathetic look, silently agreeing with his assessment and they all went to their desks. Back to work. Everything was on the line. Nothing could be overlooked.

Ned and Jamison stuck around, looking at their captain. They were the lead detectives on this case. Everyone had their own primary cases but tried to help work all cases if they could.

"The crime scene is out by the old plane crash memorial," LeTrai said, taking the lead and grabbing his coat and keys. "Let's get going. We needed to be gone a half an hour ago acording to the mayor, who won't stop calling."

He groaned. Politicians never knew how hard it actually was to put the puzzle pieces together. They just want things magically done by their civil servants, so they can smooth things over for their campaigns in the press.

Meanwhile, there was another woman killed. A real person with a family and a life and dreams. She was gone.

Madeline.

She was barely thirty and had a nametag on her waitress uniform. That uniform definitely looked familiar.

Murdered and left like garbage. Her arms and legs were bound and hair was chopped, just like Alyssa's had been. Her stomach was slit, and Ned doesn't want to think about how painful it must've been her murder. She was a woman, someone's daughter, and Ned stared at the body until a sheet was placed over her.

The medical examiners had gone over the previous location and this one with a fine tooth comb and came up empty. No hair, no prints, no fibers.

Nothing.

The only bit of evidence they had so far was a partial imprint from a muddy boot found on the road, leading to skid marks where the second victim was discovered.

Madeline, his mind stubbornly insisted, not the victim. He always reminded herself to use their names, refusing to give in to the urge to tar them with a meaningless label. To forget their names was to forget that they were human. To sweep aside the fact that they had lives and families and dreams before crossing paths with the faceless stranger Ned and every cop in Grandview now sought.

"He can't keep it up forever," Jamison said. "Eventually, he'll slip up and when that happens, we'll nail his ass to the wall. It will happen, Ned. Just be patient."

He pulled on plastic gloves. He toyed with the edge of his, snapping it repeatedly against the thin skin of his wrist. "We're going to start catching a lot of heat from upstairs on this one. People are going to be scared." He sighed, crouching down to take another close look at her uniform and then standing up.

He recognized it. Whoever this Madeline woman was, she worked at Rosie's diner.

"C'mon, let's go get lunch at Rosie's," he said.

"You want lunch right now?" Jamison asked, following him away from the scene and opening the driver's side. "After that?"

"Not really, but I recognize the uniform the victim was wearing. It's the same one that they have," he explained, getting into the passenger. "Maybe they can tell us a little bit more about her."

"Good idea, rookie." Jamison hit the hood of the car before he slid into his seat. "But not good enough to drive yet. Let's hit the road."

* * *

Ned picked at his remaining food and took a final sip of his soda before tossing the last few fries in his mouth as the waitress, Ruby, came back over to their table. The young girl had been busy most of their time at the diner and neither Jamison or Ned had had the chance to ask her any questions yet.

Now that the restaurant's lunch rush had mostly cleared he had a chance.

"Can I get anything else for you two?" Ruby asked, taking both of their plates. "Maybe some milkshakes or a sundae?"

Ned grabbed a napkin and wiped his mouth before he pulled out his badge and showed it to her. "Would you mind answering a few questions?" He asked.

"What about?" The girl asked, pulling on the end of her ponytail as she looked over Ned and his uniform slowly before reaching his eyes.

Jamison chuckled and Ned kicked him under the table. God, he hated when girls looked at him like that. It was so annoying.

"A girl, her name is Madeline." He started, not really knowing what else to say. "She worked here, right?"

"Maddy? Yeah, she's my dorm roommate. We both got a job working weekends here, why?" Ruby asked, sitting down next to him. "Did something happen?"

Ned looked over at Jamison, who nodded and slid the photo over to him. "I know this is going to be a lot to take in," he said softly. "And this picture is rather gruesome, but we need someone to ID the body."

Ruby nodded slowly, trying her best not to get too emotional as she took hold of the photo. A few tears spilled before she turned it back over. "That's her. That's Maddy,"

"Does Maddy have a last name?" Jamison asked softly, reaching across the table to place his hand on top of Ruby's.

Jamison convinced the waitress to come in after her shift was done to talk more.

She was a thin, wiry girl with sunken, twitchy eyes, and she told Ned that Maddy was convinced she was being followed on her walks home from to the dorms. She'd gotten mace to protect herself, but had disappeared the night before after shift when she admitted the suspicion to her friend.

"They're not random targets," Ned sighed, throwing his pen across the room after Ruby left. "They're picked out."

Jamison nodded. "So how do we find out who the killer might pick next, kid? I heard the mayor called LeTrai already to put the crackdown. He wants this guy off the streets."

He worried his bottom lip as he turned that over in his mind. Cases like as this were bad enough without the higher-ups sticking their noses in. High jingo, he'd heard it called by one of the old guys

LeTrai, a twenty-year veteran, always said that when a case had high jingo, you worked it by the book and watched your six. He didn't usually hear too many of the Chief's stories but that was one piece of advice that he took to heart.

"I guess that means we better get busy then," he joked.

"Don't want to do anything to upset the Mayor." Jamison chuckled. "Get a move on, Banks. You're holding up an important investigation. Those of us that have to work for a living have to wait until you and Hawthorne make your rounds.

"I promised Katie I'd take her out tonight." He groaned, running his hands through his hair. He was supposed to be off two hours ago. "Don't make me out to be one of those guys that lies to his girlfriend."

"Don't worry, Ned. We'll get you home before the oven timer goes off." Jamison sat down in his desk finally and cracked his knuckles before they got to work.

Jamison was right.

Six o'clock rolled around quicker than expected, time flying as he and Jamison go over the current open cases and the backlog of reports that they need to file to get caught up. They had been preoccupied with usual desk duties because of the new high priority case.

"See you in the morning," he waved as he stood up, placing his last file on top of the pile.

Walking through the doors, he's surprised to feel like someone was watching him. He walked around the building looking around his surroundings and not seeing many people.

He pushed it off and walked toward his vehicle. He got inside his truck and felt it again. That presence.

He looked around the cab of his truck and it felt as strong as ever, until there was a pressure on his arm, like someone grabbed hold of it.

"Alyssa," he sighed, thinking on the fly. "If this is you…. I can't see you, but I can bring you to someone who can."

* * *

Katie was on her computer, typing away with headphones in when Ned came down the basement stairs. He couldn't tell if whatever he'd felt (if it was even Alyssa) felt in the car was still with him, but he walked toward his girlfriend quickly.

He hadn't wanted it to come to this, but when Jim answered the door and regretfully told him that Melinda wasn't home he knew that she was his only answer.

"Katie?" He tapped her shoulder and she jumped slightly, pulling her earbud out. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"No, it's fine. I just didn't even feel you sit down on the bed," she said, looking back at her document that she was writing in.

It looked like the outline for a paper that she was writing, but her computer was closed before he looked again.

"What's up? You're back earlier than I thought," she said. "I thought we were going to that nine o'clock movie."

"I know. I told Jamison you were on my case to get out early," he grinned. Laughing a little as he leaned in to kiss him.

She laughed and rolled her eyes at him. "Maybe I'll start to get on your case now," she smiled. "Everything go okay?"

"For the most part," he sighed, shaking his head as he ran his hand through his hair. "Mrs. Callahan pretty much lost the ground beneath her when she came in and I had to give her ride home."

She nodded. "My mom is over there, with cookies that she and Mackenzie made."

"About that, I felt something… in my car." He sighed, looking around. "Is anyone?"

She gave a quick glance around the room. "Just Homer," she rose her hand to rest on top of the air just by her knee. "But I don't see anyone else."

"Oh," he said. "That's good, I guess."

Katie slowly took Ned's hands in hers and gave them a light squeeze. "Do you wanna talk about her? See if anything happens?" She asked.

She didn't want to anything to do with Alyssa's spirit, and she hadn't seen her since that glimpse, but if Ned needed closure, then she would try to find her for him.

He squeezed her hands back. "Yeah. That would be nice," he whispered.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Things have been coming pretty slow. I'm not quite sure exactly where I'm headed with the end of this yet, but things are coming lol. Hope you enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy writing them :) xx Mariah**

* * *

As hard as Katie tried, she wasn't able to contact Alyssa. She could see the disappointment in Ned's eyes when after a half an hour no one had come.

She squeezed his hands and brought one to her mouth, kissing it. "Eventually she will make another appearance," she whispered, looking around the basement once more before she let go of his hands and moved to sit down more comfortably.

"Another?" He asked, confused.

"I only caught a glimpse of her once. It was just a glimpse and she was gone. I didn't think it meant anything until you expressed any concern." She tried her best to lie through her teeth.

She knew it all came down to her personal feelings about Alyssa and the fact that she didn't know if she could do this. She didn't know if she could talk to Ned about this, about his stupid ex. They avoided talking about Toby at all costs, why couldn't this be the same?

Alyssa was the worst in high school, (she wasn't even at her worst at the New Year's party) even if the girl was dead, and Katie sure as hell didn't want that damn girl in her head, let alone any of her siblings or mother's either. She was the absolute worst, and how could she tell Ned that?

"Why wouldn't you tell me?" He looked hurt, and she wanted to cry because that wasn't her intention at all.

"Ned," she whispered. "It's hard for me." She didn't know what else to say.

"And you don't think this is hard for me? You didn't have to drive her mother home because she was too heartbroken to drive." He muttered, turning and pushing his legs off the bed.

His first instinct was always to leave when he was angry or felt cornered.

He always did.

"Please, don't go." She sighed, moving to follow him where he sat on the edge of the bed.

"I should go home. I haven't in a while. My mom is probably worried," he sighed.

She tried to wrap her arms around him, but he wouldn't let her for very long before he stood up. "Ned, I'm sorry that Alyssa tortured me in high school and it's hard for me to want to establish any connection with her in the afterlife. But that doesn't mean I wasn't trying." She stood in front of him before he had the chance to go up the stairs. "Please just listen to me."

He sighed and turned the other way, pacing back and forth before he said anything. He breathed out and rubbed his face. "You've never told me about any of that with Alyssa before, Katie. I know you're trying and things don't happen overnight, and thank you for that."

"I didn't tell you because we don't talk about our exes," she whispered. "And it's because when we do, this is what happens."

"We should try and be more open about things. Maybe not tonight, but one day. Things will get easier," he said, going to hold her hands. "I don't want to fight like this and I definitely don't want to leave or go back to work."

She squeezed his hands and slowly wound her arms around him to pull him in for a hug. "I don't want you to leave or go back to work either. I'm only gonna be here for another day."

"Yes, only one more day." He sighed, pressing a kiss to her head. "Let's make the most of it then and go out to dinner before the movie."

She smiled and leaned up to kiss his lips briefly. "Okay. Just let me change real quick," she said, patting his shoulders.

He swung his arm around her and pulled her back in for another kiss. She melted into him, her knees giving out and he held her up with ease. When he pulled back, he touched her face and smiled. "You look good in these jeans," he said, licking his lips.

"Oh, yeah? You noticed?" She smiled, feeling his hands move around her backside and squeeze.

"I always do," he smiled, tapping her ass as he stepped back. "I'll go start the car."

"Okay. I'm just going to straighten my hair quick and change my shirt," she said, turning toward the bathroom. "Then we'll be good to go."

* * *

After dinner, they were closer than ever. It was cold and Katie had forgotten her gloves, so she tucked herself into Ned as they ran to his truck across the street from the sushi place they'd gone to.

"I'm glad I tried something new," Ned said, chuckling as he opened the driver's side door. "It was good. Just hop up here."

"I told you it would be. Me and Liv go after studying all the time." She said, hopping into the truck and sliding over past the driver's seat. Ned stepped up and sat to her as he turned the key. "I'm just glad Grandview is finally getting some more restaurants. Not just more of the same stuff." She rubbed her hands together and then wrapped her arms around him. "Hey, you good?"

He looked over at her as he let the truck sit and warm for a minute. He nodded. "Today's been rough, but yeah, I'm good. Thanks for checking in." He said, smiling.

"I always will," she laid her head on his shoulder and ran her hand over his chest. "We should get going if you want to get candy at the gas station before the trailers start."

"You know I always get skittles before a movie," he nodded, putting his car in drive so he could pull out of his parking spot by the curb and onto the road.

"You and skittles," she laughed, fishing her phone out of her purse. She absentmindedly ran through her usual apps. Her Facebook, Instagram, and email.

A text came in, but nothing exciting. Her mom wanted her to grab wipes on her way home.

"Do you think the gas station will have wipes?" She asked, absent-mindedly as she unbuckled and slipped her phone into her jacket pocket.

"Why?" He turned off into the gas station and parked. He shut the truck off and leaned back in his seat as he glanced over.

"My mom asked me to pick some up," she said, moving out of the truck after a minute.

Ned walked up behind her and into the gas station. "We can always make a stop after the movie if they don't." He said.

"Will the grocery store still be open? It'll be like eleven thirty." She said, immediately walking down toward the one aisle with any merchandise besides food, cheap chips, and candy. She spied a package of wipes on the bottom shelf and grabbed two to be safe once she saw they were smaller. "Nevermind. We're good."

"Now for the important stuff, the snacks for the movie." He winked.

She laughed out loud. God, she loved him. "Yeah, go get your skittles big man." She shook her head and walked around toward the starbursts she wanted.

That was when Katie caught a second glimpse of her. Of Alyssa.

Her blonde hair bounced as she walked behind her boyfriend, ridiculously close to him for her liking, even if Alyssa was dead.

"Ned," she called out, from the other aisle, meeting her eyes before he turned.

"Of course, it's you all the damn people can see me…" Alyssa scoffed and crossed her arms, rolling her eyes. "I always knew you were a freak." Alyssa disappeared and she knew that this was just the damn beginning.

Ned turned to face her, mouthing something, and before she could respond, she had to shake the feeling of that she was right back in high school off her back.

Alyssa knew she could see her now. There was no going back.

She had a feeling that it was going to be a lot like her sophomore year of high school all over again. Too much darkness and drama with Henry and Alyssa. She'd wanted to kill herself. It had only been a thought and was very fleeting, but it had been there. It stayed for quite a long time.

A really long time.

"Katie?" Suddenly he was beside her, not holding any package of skittles as she looked over his empty hands. "Babe, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Alyssa," she whispered, shaking her head. "I saw her."

Ned turned his head like he would see her too even if she was there, but she was already gone.

"What?" He looked back at her. "Where is she?"

"She's gone," she sighed, itching her neck. She could feel her skin crawling with anxiety and sweat, god she hated this. She didn't want to be wrapped with Alyssa.

Not again.

* * *

After the movie they were laying together in the basement again, spooning contentedly. Surprisingly Alyssa had left them alone so far and though Katie's eyes were heavy with sleep, Ned's fingers tracing circles along her stomach kept her tethered to consciousness. But it tickled when his hand ghosted under her shirt, over her ribs, and she foolishly alerted him to the fact when she squealed.

"A sweet spot, huh?" he asked against her ear, then repeated the move.

Her entire body tensed, and she pushes her back against his chest, kicking her feet out to try and move away from him. "Ned Banks, don't you dare."

He pins her easily, moving on top of her body and holding her hands over her head as he hovered above her. "As if you could outrun me. As if you could fight me off."

"Oh my god," she sputtered, laughing. "Now I have to break up with you." She remembered the time a few years ago when Ned had put her Bath & Body Works shimmering lotion all over his hand and said, "This is the skin of a killer, Bella," and she'd laughed so hard she'd nearly peed her pants. Both Ned and her dad would never let her live down the fact that she actually liked the Twilight series and owned all the movies. And books. "I hate you," she told him now, again trying to push him off of her, but it's of no use.

"Did you forget that I took second-place at state junior year? I was also a pretty good defensive linebacker in football," he explained as she tried to wiggle out from underneath him. She can't stop giggling as they continue to wrestle playfully, and they only stop when, smiling, he said, "I'm thinking about transferring to the city."

"What?" she pushed him away and sat up, her back against his headboard. Dropping bombs like that out of nowhere was a signature Katie move and she didn't like it when the tables were turned. "Why?"

Ugh, she knew why. And that's exactly why she couldn't let him do it.

"It would be great on my resume to work at the NYPD, too," he said, shrugging. "We could go anywhere."

He was so excited when he decided on trying to get into the academy, she knew he could really go anywhere if he wanted. But didn't he want to stay home?

When they got together she knew the whole long-distance thing would be troubling, but did it effectively ruin living in Grandview for him?

"No," she told him firmly. "You can't move your dream for me. This year is almost over. May will be here before we know it. I want you to be where you want, Ned. I don't want to ruin it for you."

He looked at her like she's crazy. "How could you ruin anything? I've just been thinking… I don't want to be far away from you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"You don't have to move for me," she reasoned, sighing.

"I do hate moving Katie," he said, laughing. He leaned in to nuzzle his nose against her cheek. "Maybe I could just get my own place first. I want something of my own to look forward to."

With her.

The words went unspoken, but they still hung heavy in the air.

She wanted that, too, really. So much. But she couldn't let him transfer because of her. If he ended up getting hurt on the job, she wouldn't know what to do with herself.

"We're going to be okay, Ned," she promised him. "We love each other, and that'll get us through this year, and every year." She knew it sounded like she's trying to convince herself as well as him. She kind of was.

A snickering voice did too. It wasn't the voice inside her head, it was worse.

Alyssa.

"Do you actually believe that?" The blonde asked.

Alyssa was right at the foot of the bed and Katie tried to keep her out of her head. If she just ignored her… just maybe.

"I know, babe," he said, pulling her to him. "I guess it shouldn't be too long until you're home… maybe then you could move in with me?"

"Maybe," she said, quietly. She'd withdrawn from him, he could tell that. She couldn't stop glancing at the foot of the bed. Alyssa was always in the back of her head, worrying her.

"Hey, don't get caught up in your head," he whispered, rolling over as she snuggled into him.

Relief wanted to seep in and settle down to stay, but she had to be cautious first. How did he know? "You always know," she sat up to look at him, the blanket fell away from her.

"I got pretty good at reading you when we were just kids," he laughed, reaching out to run his fingers through the ends of her hair. "I mean, of course, you've changed some but you're still the same little Katie that I could cheer up with ice cream."

All she wanted was to believe him. She wanted to block out the voice of Alyssa who wanted to hurt her.

She couldn't tell Ned this. He wouldn't know how to handle it. How to handle the painful side of the girl he once loved. She hid it from him instead.

"You have to cheer me up with other stuff now," she admitted, plastering a smile on her face as she settled in against him, her ear against his chest.

He loved her more than she ever thought was possible. It should scare her, really. But it's not the intensity of love that worries her. It's the world's cold cynicism toward it; the idea that one day his feelings will change as they all inevitably do, that falling too hard and too fast at their age had somehow already sealed their fate.

Well, she won't have that. She won't allow it.

She won't allow Alyssa to take that from her, so she closed her eyes and claimed what's rightfully hers.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: I'm sad to say that Alyssa is messing with Katie and Ned in this chapter, but things will get better... eventually... well not for a little while, but I hope you all enjoy this anyway :) xx Mariah**

* * *

After an hour of trying to help get Katie to come, Ned moved off her reluctantly. He sighed and threw his pillow at the wall as he sat up.

"Oh, Ned. Don't overthink this baby," she rolled over to follow him. She knew how hard he was trying, but nothing had been helping. SHe just couldn't concentrate when she had Alyssa in her ear. But she couldn't tell him that. "Hey, it's okay."

"I feel like a failure," he shook his head. "We've never had this problem before."

"Ned, it's not you." She couldn't meet his eyes as she heard Alyssa's cackle behind her. She was running out of things to say. She moved to wrap her arms around him and press a kiss to his shoulder. "It's school and all my deadlines. I'm stressed out and can't concentrate."

"Yeah, it's always about school." He muttered, getting out of bed.

"Ned, please don't go." She closed her eyes. "Maybe some music will help."She wished she could say they couldn't let Alyssa win. That bitch was blowing her out of the water right now.

"I'm just gonna shower. I just need a minute," he sighed and moved toward the bathroom.

She felt defeated as the door closed behind him. She plopped her head back on her pillow and frustratedly kicked the blanket from her and groaned. "Why are you even here?" She muttered, opening her eyes to see Alyssa was still in the room. "You're not helping anyone."

"Well, at first I didn't really know why but now I do. It was always so much fun making your life hell in high school." Alyssa laughed, appearing beside her on the bed.

"What did I ever do to you?" She moved out of bed, grabbing her thrown clothes and pulling them on as she scaled the stairs.

The blonde scoffed. "You were the first girl who had the balls to use an original routine at cheer tryouts. You showed me up, Katie, and you were just some stupid freshman. I could never let you be on the team after that."

"Or happy for that matter," she muttered as she slammed the door closed behind her. She was standing the kitchen, and so was her mother and father, who were startled by her.

"What about being happy?" Her dad, Jim, was almost too happy for her liking. He grinned at her as he came around the island in his pajamas.

"Nothing, no one's happy." She grumbled, rolling her eyes and walking past him. It reminded them too much of when she was high school too.

Her mother looked up at her father and he was shooed out with a single look. "I'll be up in like ten minutes. Don't you dare fall asleep, Jim." Melinda set out to grab the tub of ice cream that was left over from her birthday cake earlier and grabbed two spoons, going to stand across from her.

"What's up?" Her mom popped the top off and stuck her spoon in, holding one out to her. "I saw Alyssa follow you up, but I don't think she noticed that I did before she was gone. How's that going?"

"Terrible, she's ruining everything." Katie took the spoon and shoved it in for a mighty mouthful.

"Ruining what?" Her mom asked, furrowing her brow.

"My relationship, my sex life. Everything," she sighed. "I couldn't… concentrate when she was in my ear… and now Ned knows something is up. I couldn't you know… get there."

"Oh," her mom sighed. "And now it's all in his head, like your father."

"Yes," she dug around for another spoon of ice cream. "I don't know what I'm going to do. I don't want him to think that I don't want because I do… and everything is so hard right now. At the same time, I feel like I've taken too much time off from school."

"I think you should go back to school in the next few days for sure. Ned will understand and things will get better." Her mom always knew what to say to her. She cleaned her spoon and set it down. "I'll look into things with Alyssa. Maybe I could stop by Professor Payne's tomorrow after I give him a call."

She nodded and then took her last bite as she stood up, walking over to hug her. It was a tight and warm hug. "Happy Birthday, mom."

"Thank you, sweetheart," her mom smiled. "I'm only five years from fifty. Very scary."

"You look good, mama. Don't worry," she winked and then was on her way toward the basement. "Just let me know anything you find out or if you run into Alyssa, okay? I'm gonna go try and cheer Ned up now that you know who is gone."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm still looking hot and Alyssa is the equivalent to Voldemort. I get it. Now don't forget to cheer Ned up twice," her mother ushered her away with a wink and indulged herself in another bite of ice cream as Katie pulled the door closed laughing.

* * *

Katie and Ned were lying in each other's arms an hour or so after she came back down to make her boyfriend feel a little better, and he snuggled in to kiss her cheek. She could feel his smile as he pressed kisses along the curve of her neck. She had definitely cheered him up.

"Mmm, I love you." He breathed softly, relaxing into her. "I'm sorry I let everything go to my head."

"I love you too," she laughed, looking over at him. "See, I told you it wasn't you." She was smug and wanted to revel in a little, he chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry for being a jackass. It's just… when I couldn't get you there it was like another failure and with all the stress at work, I didn't want to disappoint another person." He sighed, sitting up. "And as much as I wish I could stay longer, I should get going. I've been here for the last few days and I'm out of underwear."

She nodded, sitting up wrap her arm around him. "I think it's about time I head back home too," she whispered, pressing a kiss to his shoulder and embracing him tightly. "I've missed enough school, and I already feel like I'm behind even if I'm caught up."

He nodded, looking over at her. "I've enjoyed having you home. Thanks for staying," he said. "It's been a rough couple of days. I don't know what I would've done if you weren't here."

"If you ever need me, just call. I'll be home as soon as I can," she said, running her hands through his hair. "You know that."

"I do, and I will," he smiled, leaning in to kiss her lips briefly.

She smiled, touching his face before they pulled apart. When she found herself looking at him she wondered the next time they would be together like this. He moved to stand, pulling his jeans up and going to button them. She stopped his hand and pulled him toward the bed.

"Will you stay a little longer?" She asked, knowing she would most likely get her way. "Pretty please… I didn't get to properly say goodbye to you…"

When had Ned ever been able to say no to her?

"I don't know, it's almost midnight." He said, glancing at his watch and then back at her as he plopped down next to her.

"So why are you even leaving? Your mom won't even care if you're here another night and it's closer to the station." She explained softly, leaning into his chest to lay him back down. "Plus if you stay… we can say goodbye all… night… long." He just pouted, pondering what she'd said. "Put that lip away," she told him, leaning down to give him another kiss.

He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to straddle him. "I think I like that idea," he groaned.

"Ned!" She squealed, but his lips were roaming up her neck and she bit back her half-hearted protest. His hands skimmed down her sides and underneath her t-shirt, ghosting up and over her chest. He settled them on her breasts, his fingers beginning to work her nipples into hard peaks. "Mmm… I'm glad you decided to stay." She murmured.

He gave her a wicked smile and flipped her onto her back. His hands left her breasts and she let out a frustrated sigh at the loss of contact. She quickly changed her tone, though, when his hands traveled further south to play with the waistband of her panties.

"I'm glad I did too," he said with a smirk.

She responded by grabbing his head and pulling him in for a kiss. The kiss started out slow, soft and languid, but quickly became filled with fire. As their lips moved together and their tongues wrestled for dominance, Ned slipped his hand into her panties and swiftly moved two fingers into her. Her hips react of their own accord, bucking up to meet his hand as she gasped against his lips. He pumped his fingers into her a few times, breaking their kiss and looking into her eyes, both of them panting heavily.

"So wet, so eager," he remarked, quirking up an eyebrow. Before she could even comprehend what was going on, he pulled his hand out of her underwear and brought his fingers up to his mouth, sucking on them greedily. A loud groan slipped out of from her lips as he shifted himself further down on the bed, lifting her shirt and kissing his way down. "You like that?"

"That was hot," she wet her fingers and brought them to her center under her panties, rubbing in tight circles to work herself up as Ned made his way there.

Once, he's settled between her legs, he pulled the fabric of her panties to the side and grinned as he watched her hand move in tandem. "Eager for me to touch you, baby?" He whispered, slowly stopped her hand as he lowered his mouth to her.

She gasped as his mouth connected with her core. Her gasped grew into a steady stream of moans as his teeth and tongue worked to create a blissful rhythm. He reached up and slid his index finger into her and it took all of three strokes before she came hard. Ned's mouth latched to her center, riding out her orgasm. Once she quieted, Ned came to lie next to her, cradling her head to his chest.

It took a few minutes to stop shaking and calm her breathing, but when she did, she gathered herself together and slid down his body, yanking Ned's boxers down a little harder than she intended to. His erection sprung free and he let out a groan as she pressed her lips to him. His hands fist her hair, pulling it slightly, as she bobbed up and down, taking as much of him in her mouth as could. She worked at a steady pace, and after a few minutes, he pulled her head back.

"I'm close," he told her. She answered him by going back to what she was doing. After a few seconds, he shuddered and his hips stilled. She drank in all of him, only releasing him when he went limp. "Shit, Katie," he groaned.

She crawled up his body and settled her head on his chest. They were sweaty, spent, and happy. She laid still, listening to his heartbeat. "I know you'll close this case," she whispered, kissing his chest. "I'm sorry everyone is on your case, but I'm rooting for you, even if I'm all the way in New York City."

"You're amazing, Katie. Thank you," he whispered, leaning in to kiss her forehead. "You have no idea the effect you have on me. I think I'm falling head over heels for you."

She was shocked at the ease with which he said the words, but she was even more shocked at how natural it felt to hear them. She loved him more than she ever had loved anyone.

She nodded and whispered back. "Me, too."

* * *

The next morning came quickly; it was barely six when Ned's phone rang with more terrible news.

Another body. Another murder scene. Another family grieving their dead daughter.

He'd stayed in bed as long as he could, wrapping his arms around a still sleeping Katie. He didn't want to go for several reasons. The main one was that his girlfriend was leaving to go back to the city today.

"Are you headed out for work?" She yawned as his cool lips pressed against the warm skin of her back.

"Yeah. I have like ten minutes," he said, feeling her twist in his arms.

"I guess this is another temporary goodbye," she whispered, leaning in to peck his cheek and hug him tightly. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too," he whispered. "I'll call you tonight."

"Okay. Sounds good. Be safe," she pressed a kiss to his throat, reluctantly sinking back into the bed as he moved to stand up.

After quickly pulling his clothes on and blowing her a kiss, Ned was gone and Katie fell back asleep until her alarm went off at nine. There was a ten minute period where she laid in bed before going to take a shower.

Katie packed her clothes quickly and thankfully her mom had washed all of her dirty clothes and folded them for her. Melinda had even made an on-the-go breakfast for her by the time Katie was dressed and ready to go upstairs.

"I know you wanted to get going as soon as you could," Melinda smiled and handed her a coffee cup. "Just drive careful. The roads are a little icy according to the news."

She nodded and took a sip. She was always cautious in the winter. Her dad had taught her better than to underestimate the snow and black ice. "I'll go five under. Promise," she said, setting her bags down by the basement door. "I can afford a few minutes to have coffee with you. Is everyone else still asleep?"

"For now, but the house will be bouncing with kids soon." Melinda went back around the counter, flipping an egg for the usual Sunday morning breakfast. "Did Ned already leave?"

"Very early this morning," Katie pulled out the sandwich her mom had made and took it out of the baggy, biting into it. "He was called in for another important police matter."

"Your dad said that the mayor's coming down hard on everyone," Melinda explained and she nodded, knowing that wasn't even the half of it from how stressed Ned was.

"Yeah, Ned's beyond stressed. He's trying to find his own place and I hope that will help him a little. He needs his own space as much as he loves Delia." She explained, taking another bite of her sandwich and finishing it.

Her mom agreed and handed her napkin. She wiped her mouth a stood. "Well, I better get going. I'll text you when I'm home." She went around to hug her as best she could as her mother was cooking, kissing her quickly on the cheek. "I love you. Talk to you soon."

"Love you too, Katiebug," Melinda smiled. "I'll tell everyone you love them too. Drive safe."

"I will. I'll miss you so much." Katie grabbed her bags and walked over to the door, pulling her shoes and coat on. Once she loaded up her car she was off. Her commute to the city was uneventful, partly because her mind was still with Ned.

She could smell him - on her clothes, her skin – and every time she inhaled her mind swam with images of him from these past days she was home. Through the traffic as she entered the city and the following walk up to her apartment she kept imagining him – lying on his bed, his hair tousled, or his chin resting on her lower belly, gazing up at her through his thick, blond eyelashes.

God, she was done for. It was like she twelve again.

She put her key in the door and Hannah squealed as she walked in.

"You're home!" Her best friend whisked her into a hug before she could get two steps inside. She dropped her bags the best she could to hug her back. "I missed you so much, Katie! Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, just a tough case for Ned. He needed me for an extra two days," she explained, sighing. "Did you hear about…"

"Bitch-waffle Alyssa got murdered, I know… tragic." Hannah said softly.

Katie hadn't thought about that nickname in such a long time. Katie laughed out loud and they both thought of how that had come to. They were bitching about her after a particularly nasty day and they'd combined the two words to make them laugh.

"We're going to hell for that," she sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah… probably… and you're a witch for seeing ghosts, has that bitch came to you?" Hannah asked. "Do we need wine?"

"She's been the worst. I need lots of wine," she whined, going to sit on the couch while Hannah fetched a bottle of wine for them. "It's like sophomore year all over again. I felt like a total freak and she messed with my sex life. I don't know what else she has in store, but she hasn't shown herself since."

She was so happy to be home. Katie could tell Hannah everything, and she would make her feel better. She would help her figure out what to do and how to tell Ned in a way her mom couldn't.

God, Katie had missed her best friend so much.

* * *

Ned was this close to punching his fist through the glass at the smugness of their suspect.

It was like the suspect knew they had nothing concrete to pin him to the crime.

LeTrai had brought him in on false pretenses, cornering him in an interrogation room for as long as they could before he either lawyered up or stormed off.

Which by the looks of it, wasn't going to happen any time soon.

Joseph Kendall was enjoying every bit of attention he was getting. He wanted to "help". The man's own words. Joseph smugly walked past each crime scene photo that was pinned up to the corkboard, dissecting each photo with his eyes and licking his lips while he did.

"We still need something solid," Letrai said, frustrated.

Ned ran his hand through his hair. "I have a theory about it, actually," he muttered, looking over at his captain. "The murders are systematic. They aren't rape, he doesn't have the balls for that. These murders are just torture. No one hates women like that for no reason..." He hesitated. He hated his own words. "Do you think someone did this to him first?"

"Yes," LeTrai whispered, stepping toward the glass and knocking on it twice. They both watched as Jamison stood and made his way out of the room. "I wouldn't doubt that for one second, Ned." Once his partner came out of the interrogation room, LeTrai stepped toward the ajar door. "You two go investigate that. Fill Jamison in. I'm taking over."

Ned fills his partner in on the short walk to their desk. It was their mission to find out who made Joseph Kendall into the man he was.

After tracking down his sibling and getting a scary description of their childhood and how terrible their mother used to treat the Kendall boys. She would lock them in the basement for weeks at a time with no light and hardly any food or water. Just enough to get by.

Ned's heart stopped. This was what they need. Someone that could get to Joseph, someone that could even get him to confess.

A break in the case, finally. But, as it turned out, it wasn't much of a break.

By the time Jamison and Ned arrived at Mrs. Kendall's house, they find the mother sprawled in her kitchen, dead.

It looked like it had been at least a week by the smell, and by the amount of blood. Murder.

And they weren't able to find any incriminating evidence in the house, not a single fucking thing.

* * *

It took Katie a week before she was back into the swing of her classes. She was back to feeling like herself again. As usual, she was kicking ass in her classes and was pretty sure she could pull straight A's for the semester as long as her midterms and finals both went well.

She knew that meant lots of preparation and studying, and even less time spent being with Ned. Not that he had the time either. Her boyfriend was close to closing his first big murder case when he came to visit her, somehow switching shifts around to get Saturday off and drove to see her Friday night.

He was in her kitchen, chopping up vegetables for the dinner he's making for her, and she insisted on helping somehow. They joke and tease each other while cooking, and there's something about it that felt even more intimate than sex. It's like their two toothbrushes in one holder or shared contact solution, or her having a hidden lipstick in his center console.

They're such a…couple.

She led him over to the couch after they eat, and snuggled against his chest, content. Both of their legs are stretched out in front of them, their feet resting on the coffee table. They watched a romance movie on cable, some lifetime one.

It was barely thirty minutes in before Ned absentmindedly began to play with the ends of her hair, and she could tell there's something on his mind.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing," he said. "Just thinking about this upcoming trial, I guess. They threw out the confession Jamison and I got." He sighed, rubbing his face. "I think it's going to be harder to convict Kendall than it should be. He killed his mother, even if she abused him, and then went on to torture and kill three more innocent women."

"It'll work out, Ned." She was trying to be positive for him. She didn't know what the hell was going to happen, but god, if a jury didn't convict this man, there was something wrong with the world. "If it doesn't, you'll get him again. I know you will."

"Well, I hope it works out now," he said. "No one else deserves to die."

She pressed her face against into his neck, kissing him lightly. "You're right," she whispered. "And I think this is going to go the right way."

"Yeah, but it feels like it's my fault if it doesn't." He explained. "I'm the one who screwed up and mislead him and got the confession thrown out."

"For the better good. You know he's guilty," she said softly.

He's quiet for a few minutes, then said, "Let's hope the jury thinks so too."

She'd never felt further from him then in that moment.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: I totally gave the murder suspect the last name Kendall because of 9-1-1 and Maddie's bastard ex-husband's last name is Kendall lol. I love seeing Jennifer in a totally new role on 9-1-1 as Maddie, almost as much as I hope you all like this update. Enjoy! xx Mariah**

* * *

Spring break was coming up, one week away, when she started to worry more about Ned. He was drowning in paperwork, that much was certain.

He was doing better in some aspects like he'd finally moved out of his mom's place and into his own that was in downtown Grandview. But then when his stresses got to be too much, he'd started drinking more.

That worried her more than anything. More than his job. More than the criminals that could easily hurt him every day, but the drinking was getting back. It was more often than not that when she'd call him on her way home from school or work and she'd heard loud music in the background and laughter.

Like today.

"Hey, Katie." He chuckled at first, and then she'd heard his voice farther away from the phone. "Shut up!"

"Are you at the bar?" She sighed, leaning back into her seat as she waited outside the apartment for Hannah. They were going to see a new chick flick. Something with Blake Lively, who Katie adored.

"Yeah, just toasting with the guys after closing arguments of the trial. Just have to wait for the jury to come back now." He sounded at ease and happy for the first time in weeks.

She almost didn't want to be mad. She didn't have the heart to be mad. "Sounds like fun," she muttered.

"What's wrong?" He asked, the background quiet. Had he gone outside? "You're being really quiet. I know what that means."

"Just tired from all this studying for finals, I guess." She replied simply.

"So have any plans for tonight? You haven't told me anything about your plans yet." He said.

Ned's always been able to tell when something was bothering her, and he's got a perfect record with his responses, always knowing when to cheer her up or give her space.

"I think I'm going to a movie with a Han if she ever actually comes to the car." She answered simply, ducking down to peek and see if her friend had come out of the building yet. Just then the door swung open and out Hannah came. "Oh, I see her. Got to go. I love you. Text you later?"

"Yeah. Love you too," he doesn't say anything else, and there goes his record because he definitely didn't make her feel any better.

* * *

The next day, the jury came back. Joseph Kendall was found not guilty on all charges.

Katie called drove home as soon as she heard. She didn't want to think of where Ned's head was at. He was so sure that they were going to come back with a guilty verdict. But when she got to Grandview no one knew where Ned was. He had gone off the deep end and no one could find him.

Not even Jamison, her dad or Delia.

She had stayed home for as long as she could. It had been three days of peeking out the window and hoping he would call or show up. When he didn't show, she eventually had to go back to the city when her dad promised he would call her as soon as someone heard from him.

She had to get back to her classes before she got too far behind. She had midterms to take and Spring Break coming up in a few days. Hopefully, Ned would be back by then and she could come home to see him.

On the fourth day, Katie had filled his voicemail box. Her texts stopped delivering after a while and that meant that either he had blocked her number or his phone had been turned off or died.

Either way, what had she done wrong to deserve this? Why couldn't he come to her for these things? Why did he have to run and hide the truth?

She was worried about him so much that she had nothing left to do but force herself to focus on school. She studied all night until she couldn't take in any more information. It wasn't until she put all of her books away and turned off the light when everything started to hit her.

Where was Ned? Was he mad at her for some reason?

Why couldn't he just pick up the damn phone and tell her that he was okay? All she wanted to know was that he wasn't dying, or piss-drunk lying in a hospital unconscious somewhere.

She called him again and again always getting his voicemail that was full, because of her. She kept calling until her eyes dripped with tears. Until her walls started the crumble. The walls that usually held her up and kept everything in finally began to collapse.

Moment by moment, they fall. Salty teardrops drop from her chin, drenching her shirt. Perhaps these tears would help wash the pain out. She pressed herself further into the bed, curling her pillow close to her chest.

She could barely breathe. Her arms and legs were trembling. She couldn't stop crying. Even as she pressed her hands against the bed, they shook. It's raw, everything, raw tears, raw emotions.

She couldn't stop. Why couldn't she stop crying?

There was a knock on the door as Hannah entered her room. She must've heard her.

"You have Brandon over," she sniffled and wiped her tears away sloppily. She kept crying though, whimpering softly. "I'm fine."

"I don't care. Brandon's always here, and no, you're not fine." Hannah slipped in beside her, wrapping her arms around her. "I'm here."

* * *

As she left the classroom after her midterm the next day, Olivia's shoulder was playfully bumping hers as they made their way to the parking lot. As much as it hurt her heart, Katie was elated. Her hard work had definitely paid off so far, and she's so damn proud of herself. That's a rare feeling.

Like with everything, she had wanted to tell Ned first and immediately. But then she had remembered she didn't know where he was and called her dad. When he didn't answer, she called her mom.

"Katie, hi," Melinda's voice came through her phone as she got into her car. "What's up?"

"Had anyone heard from Ned yet? It's day five, mom, I don't know what I'm going to do," she whispered.

She decided she was going to wait to tell anyone until grades were officially posted. Maybe she'll print them out and hand everyone the paper, and then she can savor when anyone saw that 4.0.

"Ned is still MIA, honey. I'm sorry, I wish there was more I could do." Melinda sighed, and she wished she could be there to get a hug. "Your dad left about an hour ago on some mission but hasn't updated me yet. He'll call when he has info."

"Okay. I'll try and keep my mind off it then if that's possible." She laughed uneasily.

"Just take a stop at a store and then head home for a night in your the apartment," Melinda explained on the other end. "You can make a nice homey dinner and take a bath. I'll send you a good recipe link on Facebook. You finished your midterms today, right?"

"You're the best, mom," she said, leaning back into her seat. If there was anyone that could make the best out of a situation like this, it was her mom. She always had the best and brightest ideas. "I did just finish my last one. I'm just leaving school and I totally feel good about them. I don't know for sure, but I'll let you know when I do." At least someone at home was paying attention to her life and knew what was going on.

"I always wanna know," Melinda said softly. "Okay. I have to let you go to send you the link."

"Alright, love you, mom." She laughed.

"Love you too. Drive safe," Melinda said, blowing her kiss as she ended the call.

* * *

The recipe her mom sent proved to be great and both Katie and Hannah ate plenty. Brandon was staying away for the next few nights, giving the girl's a well-deserved long weekend alone after the latest Ned-fiasco went down.

Hannah thought it was a good idea, and so did her mom, but Katie just wanted to go to Grandview and look for Ned.

Bankrupt!

Katie laughed under her breath as she curled her legs up under her body and scooted closer to Hannah on the couch. They were currently watching a rather terrible rerun of Wheel of Fortune on the tv.

"This woman is having some of the worst bad luck I've seen," Hannah crowed, popping a handful of popcorn into her mouth. "She finally guesses a letter that's on the board and then the wheel lands on bankrupt right after. And look at this guy! He's buying all the vowels! Stop doing that, you moron!"

"At least it's revealing some of the puzzle," she shrugged, scribbling into her journal. Katie looked at the TV screen, squinting as though it'd reveal more letters. "Still don't know what it is though." She watched as Hannah stuffed more popcorn in her mouth. "How are you still eating?"

"Everyone knows you should never buy that many vowels," Hannah scoffed. "And this idiot just bought every single one of them and hardly has any money left. I eat when I'm stressed."

"Well at least he's out of vowels to buy now," she snickered a little.

"Yeah. Let's see what he does with his next spin." Hannah said. Bankrupt. "Oh my God!" Hannah screamed, dropping her head down on the back of the couch dramatically. "These people are the absolute worst."

"They can't help if the wheel lands on bankrupt, Hannah," she laughed.

Maybe this was good. Katie couldn't remember the last time she'd laughed in the last six days.

Six days since she'd talked to Ned. Almost a whole week.

"No, but they don't have to spend all of their money on vowels, either!" Hannah muttered, putting the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table in front of her.

"You got me there," she agreed, her eyes going wide. "Wait, he's going to solve the puzzle."

"Cloudy with a—- Cloudy with—-"

"Cloudy with NO chance of showers!" She bellowed, angrily setting her notebook down on the coffee

table. "How do these people even get on this show?!"

Hannah cackled and pointed the remote at the TV, shutting it off with a press of the power button. "See, told you I wasn't the only one who thought that." Her best friend turned her body toward her. "I think I'm still a tad hungry."

"Okay. Let's go investigate the fridge for a snack for you then," Katie said, grabbing her hand as she stood up and pulling her along. She stopped dead in her tracks as Carl the Watcher appeared in front of her and Hannah's face slammed into her back.

"What the hell? OW." Hannah muttered, rubbing her nose.

"Hold on, Han. I'm sorry." She said, waving her off. "Go look in the freezer for ice cream. What are you doing so far from Grandview, Carl?" She asked, looking the older man up and down. The man was still exactly the way she remembered him from when she last saw him, six years prior. He only came to her in an absolute time of need, and still, Carl usually gave his messages to her mother.

"I came to warn you about something," the man said. "Your boyfriend is in trouble."

"Ned?" She sighed, walking through him. She didn't want to hear about him right now. That was the last thing she needed was to think about Ned right now. Even if a part of her wanted to know where he was. Why should she care anymore after what he'd put her through? "I don't know if he should even be my problem anymore."

"You still love him, no?" Carl asked.

She spun around to look at him, biting her tongue before anything nasty or cruel came out. Several things came to her mind. "Of course, I love Ned. That shouldn't matter," she said. "He obviously doesn't care about me or himself very much."

"You don't seriously believe that now do you, Katherine?" Carl appeared in front of her again, his face turned stone cold as he looked her in the eyes.

She looked at the older man and sighed. "What did you want to tell me?"

"Ned's okay," Carl said. "He's… back."

"What? She fished her phone from her back pocket. No messages. Just a candy crush notification from Mackenzie. A daily occurrence. "No one's said anything. Is he hurt?"

"Yeah, but nothing out of the regular for him." Carl shrugged, appearing behind her. "Is that the latest telephone? Wow, things have changed since I've died…"

At first, she assumed he'd probably just drank himself into a stupor for last six days. She'd been told by more than one person back home that he'd started to drink heavily again whenever they fought or he was stressed.

"Katherine, it's not what you think," Carl said seriously. "You need to go home."

That was all she needed to hear.

In a split second, she abandoned any plans she had to make a weekend with Hannah and was speed walking to her room and throwing all clothes she could think to bring in her duffle bag. Then she was grabbing her phone charger and keys and shoving them in her purse on her way out of her room.

"Where are you going?" Hannah asked, peeking out from the kitchen. The blonde was still looking through the freeze for viable treats when she came walking back down the hallway. "Are we getting takeout? What's with the bag and worried look? I tried not to listen in to your conversation with whoever..."

"I don't really know what's going on but it has to do with Ned," she said, dropping her bag by the door and pulling her coat on. She felt tears coming to her eyes. What if she lost him before she even got to Grandview? What if he thought she hated him? "I have to go, Hannah."

"Okay. Go," Hannah said, hugging her. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"Not if you don't want to," she whispered into her shoulder before she started to pull back. "I know you and Brandon would like the empty space."

"Thank you. Call me as soon as you figure anything out," Hannah said, pulling back. "Drive safe. Do you care if I use your body scrub?"

"Go for it," she laughed a little uneasily, not even thinking about some stupid body scrub right now as she opened the door and walked over to the elevator. "I'll let you know any info when I do."

"Okay, you better." Hannah smiled and closed the door once she got on the elevator. "Tell everyone hi for me. Drive careful, it's super icy out there."


	14. Chapter 14

When Katie got in her car, she tore off down the road toward the freeway. She had never been much of speeder, not even when she was first driving and a little reckless, but now she found herself going ninety-five in a seventy to get to Grandview.

There were more than a few times where Katie white-knuckled her steering wheel and was afraid she might crash, but thank goodness for a good car and nice tires.

Katie made it to Grandview in just under two hours, by the time the clock turned nine. She parked on the street, barely remembering to turn her car off as she ran up to the front door of her parent's house. It was barely two minutes before her dad opened the door. He hadn't even looked at her and was shirtless and hidden by the door partially.

"Here's the thirty bucks-Katie? What are you doing here? Are you delivering Thai food now?" By the way, he was hiding behind the door now, she knew that her father had answered the door without any pants.

"No. I have an emergency. Where's mom?" She pushed past him, on a mission and already jogging up the stairs. "Mom? Have you talked to Carl?" Melinda appeared in the hallway, semi-dressed in her nightgown that she'd only managed to pull one strap up and onto her shoulder. "Where is everyone?"

"The girls are with Delia at her apartment for a movie night," Melinda blushed, slipping her other arm in place. "Your brother is with Lucy, as usual, and Carl, not in like a year, why?"

"He just appeared in my kitchen two hours ago," she panted, still red-in-the-face from running up the stairs. "He told me Ned was back and to come home. Would he lie about something like that?"

Her mother's face went pale, and Katie knew the answer was no. "Let me get dressed," Melinda said, and then yelled. "Jim, get up here now!"

"I'm getting pants, one sec!" Her dad yelled from downstairs.

Katie couldn't help but laugh, even if she'd ruined her parent's night alone together. At least something was normal in her life. Her parent's sometimes obnoxious and adorable love for each other.

* * *

Ned doesn't remember getting home.

Just remembered hearing the verdict and storming out of the courthouse. He'd gone to so many bars the first night that he'd lost count. He'd slept in his car. The second day, when Ned finally sobered up he went to a liquor store and bought as much as he could afford, the rest was a blur.

The next thing Ned remembered was stumbling into his apartment. He plopped down on his couch and set the half drank bottle he had next to him.

What day was it?

He fished his phone out of his back pocket and blinked to tried and read the screen. He had shut it off after Katie had started calling.

He'd lost three days to the blur of a blackout drunk stunt, and Katie had called him more than fifty times. Along with his mother and Jim. He didn't even want to start with the voicemails.

When he finally had the balls to listen to the first voicemail his girlfriend left him, he threw his phone at the wall.

Goddamnit.

He hadn't meant to hurt her. He just couldn't take it anymore. He drank himself until he blacked out again.

Day five his legs were burning as he stumbled into the bathroom, gulping and gasping for air with each deep, heaving breath. His t-shirt was completely soaked through and he has half a mind to toss it away in the garbage can instead of sticking it in the wash.

"Ned, I love you. Please just call me… I'm worried about you and if you're okay. Please call me."

The words echoed around his head.

Surprisingly there's no satisfaction that came along with the words. Only a reminder of the pain he'd caused her, again.

It doesn't change anything. He'd tried to drink away the hurt the not-guilty verdict brought him, but it wasn't helping. And it may have been in a fit of irrationality, a haze of anger that clouded his judgment, a moment of temporary insanity that was completely hundred-eighty-degree turn in the wrong direction, but it had still happened. And he can't go back in time to change that.

He's not sure how Katie could ever forgive him. Not when he can't forgive himself. She deserved more than that. She deserved more than him.

* * *

Katie considered just going over to his apartment alone, but her mom wanted to wait until her dad went over and gave her the all clear.

She tried to tell herself that she wasn't doing this because she'd forgiven him and loved him.

Because she hadn't forgiven Ned. Not really.

She wasn't even trying to hide how pissed off she was at him. Though she kind of was. Instead of being angry, she was curled up on the couch waiting for her dad come back or call.

It was maybe five minutes later when her phone buzzed beside her, but she didn't know if she wanted to answer. She knew it was probably her dad just calling with more bad news.

"Are you really not gonna get that? It might be important." Melinda's voice was closer than she'd thought it would be.

Last Katie knew her mom was still in the kitchen. She looked up at her mom standing there, eyebrow arched with a pointed stare.

She grabbed her phone and pressed it to her ear. "Dad, did you find him?" She asked. She had been worried to answer out of fear of what he could tell her, so she didn't want to wait any longer.

"Yeah. He's here. I don't know if he'll open the door for me though," her dad let out a deep sigh. "You should probably get over here. I'll keep trying."

Her mom had sat beside her now, arm around her. "What's he say?" Melinda asked as she ended the call.

"Dad says he's home but won't open the door," she sighed, leaning into her. "I don't know if I'm ready to go over there."

"Honey, you really can't ignore him forever. You should go over there," her mom's hand rubbed against her shoulder, trying to make her feel more at ease but she was still wary.

She just didn't know if she was ready to face him yet.

"I know Mom, okay. I know, but I just can't talk to him right now." She muttered.

Katie tried not to focus on the concern etched all over her mother's face, and tried to focus on churning out the words of her assignment instead. Except, it's harder than it should be. Not just because the words are failing her right now, and thoughts of Ned were whirring around in her brain, but it may also have a lot to do with the fact the screen has gotten all blurry with the hot tears pooling in her eyes.

"Aw baby," her mother whispered and before she knew it, Melinda was pulling her into her arms.

And it's enough for the walls to crack and for everything to seep through.

"I'm so angry Mom!" she ranted through the tears, "I'm so angry at him for running away from me again. For turning to booze instead. How could he be so reckless in the first place and maybe ruin it all? Ruining what we could have had? I love him so much and he doesn't even care anymore."

"Oh honey, trust me," Her mother said softly, "Ned still loves you. He never stopped. Not for a single moment."

"You don't know that," she sighed.

"I do know, Katie." Melinda pulled back, cupped her face in her hands and met her gaze.

Katie looked back with wet, confused eyes, silently asking the question, how?

"Do you remember when you, me and Mack had that girls night after Ned's big promotion party?" Her mother asked. Katie nodded and her eyes closed, more tears slipped out and down her cheeks. Melinda wiped them away before continuing, "Well, Ned told me that you were needing some relaxation and missed me. How could he not love you when he thinks of telling me that, Katie?"

She sighed. "I don't know what to believe anymore."

"What I know is Ned has always had a hard time when things get stressful." Her mom tried to explain, shrugging. "I'm not making excuses for his actions because they're hurting you and I hate it, but he just needs some help getting back on track. Ned made a mistake, and you know he knows that by now. But ask yourself if he would ever intentionally hurt you?"

"No, of course not," she answered, knowing it to be a truth as steady as the thump of her own heart, "But I don't know how much more of this I can take."

"I agree with you baby, so tell him to man up and swallow his pride if he wants to be with you." Her mother said, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

"You really think that will work?" She asked, looking up at her.

"If it doesn't, at least you will know you tried." Her mom stood, holding her hand out. "Now come on, I'll drive you over there. Your brother can watch the house for an hour."

* * *

When her mother pulled up outside the apartment complex, Katie took a deep breath before they got out. She waited for her mom to come around locked arms with her to walk up.

"I'm nervous. What if he did something stupid?" She sighed, pulling open the main door and letting her mom walk inside first.

"Ned was never like that, Katie. Not even when he was jumping from girl to girl." Melinda reassured her.

They walked through the lobby and toward the stairs off to the left, climbing up them slowly. Neither of them was in a hurry.

Jim was on his way down the steps when they came toward him. "Hey," he smiled at the pair, his wife and daughter. "I didn't know if you were coming or not. He finally answered the door, but he wouldn't let me in."

She nodded slowly as the came up to the third floor and went toward the hallway of apartments instead up the next flight. "What did he say?"

"Not much," her dad sighed, wrapping his arm around her mom as she stepped ahead toward his door.

304

She knocked and at first, there was no answer, so she knocked a little harder, until she heard his voice.

"Jim, go away. I don't wanna talk right now," the door pulled open then, just enough for Ned's face to peek out and her to see his bloodshot eyes and palish face.

Real-life Ned, standing right in front of her. Wearing the sweatpants she got him for Christmas and no shirt. Damn, she wasn't supposed to be looking at him like that.

"Hi, Katie." He gulped.

"Hi," she returned, still trying to grasp the fact that she was actually here with him after everything. "You gonna let me in?" She asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

He stopped looking at her then and his eyes fidgeted on her parents. He ran his fingers through his hair as he opened the door just enough before he turned back around. "Only you," he muttered.

She looked over her shoulder for another second at her parents, reassuring them she'd be fine before she stepped inside and closed the door. It reeked like alcohol and dirty socks.

"Ugh, Ned." She groaned, picking up different empty bottles on the floor.

"I know it's a mess. Don't remind me," he groaned, plopping down on the couch with a sigh. "When did you get to town?"

"A couple of hours ago," she said, walking over to the garbage to deposit a few of the bottles she'd picked up on her way in. "Someone told me you were back."

"A ghost someone?" He sighed.

"Not like you were going to tell me. You haven't answered my calls in almost a week," she walked through the kitchen and toward where she could see he was sitting. He was avoiding looking at her, so she sat right in front of him. "C'mon Ned, just talk to me."

"It's not that simple," he met her gaze, but it was only for a second.

"Then start by telling me where the hell you have been? What the hell have you been doing? Did you fuck someone else or what, c'mon Ned just fucking tell me." She fell back on her defensiveness, but he was just quiet. Only breathing, listening to her, and that almost wasn't fair for her to just keep attacking him. "Are you going to tell me or not? I can't just sit here in silence!" She broke down, tears spilling out as her hands cupped her face. She couldn't hold it back anymore for the sake of his feelings.

"Is that really how you think of me?" He asked.

"I think that you've been an insensitive jerk." She's trying to hold on to all of the feelings that were overwhelming her in the past week but they're slipping through her fingers like sand. "And I don't know if I can be with you anymore."

He finally looked up at her. He reached out to curl his hand around hers, but she pulled her hand away from his and stood up.

"Katie, please don't do this." He was ready to talk now, and she hated it. "I don't want to lose you."

Why was it only when he realized he was going to lose her? Why couldn't he want to fix things before she was ready to give up?

"How can I continue to care about you so much when you care so little about yourself?" She asked, turning back to face him. "I can't do this anymore, Ned. You know I love you and that I hate to do this to you, but I can't do this. You know where to find me when you're ready to fix things between us."

To say the regret was immediate would be an understatement. She tried to hold back her tears again until she pulled the door closed and stood in front of her parents, but she would be lying if she said they didn't start to fall the second Ned couldn't see her face. She slid down against the door, the weight of her pain and the world too much.

"What happened?" her mom asked, moving down to sit by her and pull her into her arms.

She hugged her quickly and tightly. "I broke up with Ned," she sighed.


	15. Chapter 15

When Katie had gotten home to her parents house she'd called Olivia, frantic and desperate for someone who wouldn't tell her what she wanted to hear and actually tell her if she had done the right thing, she hadn't expected to end up talking late into the night over a Ben and Jerry's she'd stolen from the freezer upstairs.

Even though she and Olivia had been good study buddies, almost friends even, but since Olivia came to Grandview they hadn't hung out or talked at all about anything besides at school, really. But she had a feeling that Liv wasn't the type of person to turn away someone who was crying on the phone, so they ended up talking.

"You're luckier than most, Katie," Olivia said.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

Olivia sighed and she could see her eye roll that would be followed by a punch to her arm. "No one has ever looked at me the way that Ned looks at you. I've always been jealous."

"Not even Justin or whoever?" Katie joked, uncomfortable. Things would have been less awkward between her and Andrew. She should've called him.

"Least of all that dickwad. He doesn't deserve a name." Olivia scoffed.

"Wow," she applauded. "Look who's come a long way. I'm proud."

Olivia giggled and then sighed. "Even when things were good with my ex, he didn't even look at me that way, you know. Not even when we were two lovebirds with not a problem in sight wanting to move to New York together."

Katie froze, spoon halfway to her mouth, heart in her stomach. "Wait," she said slowly, lowering the spoon to set it in the pint. "Who are we talking about here? Me or you?"

Olivia was quiet for a moment. "Both of us, of course." As if it's obvious. "You mean the world to Ned, anyone can tell that and I've only met him like once. What could be so bad between you two to break things off right now?"

Katie felt a little nauseous. Why did it hurt so much to hear her say, more or less, that Ned could be the one? Sure, everyone had always been joking about it since she was just a kid with a crush on him. But somehow hearing Olivia say it (the same person who had at first told her that settling for one man at twenty was a dumb decision) was different.

"I know," she said, surprising herself.

"So why aren't you with him right now?" Olivia asked. "Go tell him you're sorry. He'll understand that you were upset."

Katie told Olivia everything about her and Ned.

The problems with Ned leading her on before she came to the city because he'd always been older and she'd been untouchable for him. Then she moved away and got together with Toby. God, that relationship was a wreck. She told her about the worst Thanksgiving weekend ever, but who knew the worst snowstorm that year would bring her Ned? With her thinking of how beautiful it had been to watch things budding between her and Ned, she told Olivia about her sister being born and how they eventually became a couple.

Then it was the distance again and trying to figure out the best way to see each other. She told her when the summer had come it was easier to forget that she had to go back to NYC, but eventually she did and how Ned's work got tougher and tougher for him to keep at work and not in his head after work. Then it was his ex Alyssa ruining their new years and getting murdered. Then the alcohol.

"I have to put myself first at some point, Liv. He just keeps running away from me and drinking his problems away," she sighed, shoving the ice cream in her mouth.

"Ned loves his job. Almost as much as he obviously loves you," Olivia pointed out. "But at the same time, I see why you're pissed. Anyone would be." When did she get so insightful? "I guess it all comes down to if you love each other enough."

"It's not just about love..." She almost wished it was that easy.

"You don't trust him?" Olivia asked.

"Of course I do, it's just... Ned lost his head with this verdict and I know he'll try not to let it happen again, but can I count on him when it comes to my wellbeing and heart?" She explained, sighing as she put her spook back into the ice cream. She was definitely going to finish this. "What if ten years down the line, this happens again and we have kids… what am I going to do then?"

"Katie," Olivia sighed and then continued. "Can you really blame him? I know that Alyssa was his ex, but this wasn't all about her. This was his first big murder case and the guy just walked free. This wasn't just some usual case for him."

Katie groaned and let her head fall into her hands. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe she should just be there for Ned and forgive him in time.

"I know that what he did was stupid and hurtful, Katie. Trust me, I do," Olivia explained. "But you shouldn't let one stupid mistake get in the way of your happiness. Because you and I both know that when Ned finally sobers up, all he'll want is for you to be happy again."

The only way Katie was able to get Liv off the phone, in the end, was when she vowed that she will at least talk to Ned before she came back to the city and that she would get all of the details. But before she could even think about talking to Ned again, she had to talk to her mom. She ran up the stairs to see most of the house was dark, so she went upstairs. The only lights shown were under her parents and brother's doors.

Too nervous to knock on her mom and dad's door after seeing it was closed, she knocked on Aaron's door.

"Come in," her brother said as she opened the door slowly and came in. His back was facing her as he played a game on his computer. "Who is it?"

"It's just me," she said, walking in a few steps and sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Oh, hey," Aaron pulled off his gaming headphones and paused his game. "What's up?"

"Do you think it's safe to go in mom and dad's room?" She asked, leaning back on her hands.

Her brother chuckled and stood up. "Hmm… is the door still closed?" Aaron rubbed his five o'clock shadow on his chin. Wait, since when had he gotten facial hair? He was still only sixteen. God, this was great."Oh, yeah. They've been in there almost an hour. I'd knock before doing anything. Dad hasn't been home before ten all week."

She groaned. "I really need to talk to mom about something," she sighed, rubbing her forehead. "It's kind of important and time-sensitive."

"Is it about Ned?" Her brother asked.

"Yeah, why? What's it to you?" She said defensively and sighed. "Hey, I'm sorry. That was rash."

"It's fine, sis. I know he's been AWOL all week. Dad and mom have been whispering about it whenever they think me or Mack aren't listening," her brother came to sit by her and wrapped his arm around her. He was more like their mother than he liked to admit sometimes. "But we know what's going on, and we're here for you even if we're a little younger."

"Thanks, Aaron," she leaned her head on his shoulder. "It's just so hard to know what to do. I love him so much, but I don't know..."

"You'll know what to do," her brother reassured her and pulled her close. "And just let me know if I should send Mack on him. She's like a tiger locked in a cage, you know."

"God, you're like mom and dad wrapped in a blanket at advice giving." She said, laughing out loud and standing up. "I love you, you dweeb, and I think it would be best to keep Mackenzie at bay for now."

"Love you too, can I get back to my game now?" He asked, going toward his computer. "I think I'm all juiced out for a good month on advice."

She rolled her eyes and walked out of his room. It was only good as long as it lasted with him. She came up to her parent's door and pressed her ear close (almost like she was seven again) before she even knocked. Surprisingly there wasn't much sound, a little sound of rustling sheets but nothing out of the ordinary, so she knocked.

"Mom? Can I talk to you?" She knocked again and pressed her ear to the door. "It's important." She knocked again when there wasn't any answer. "Look I promise I wouldn't be up here if it wasn't important, I swear."

She could hear her mother's laughter now. "I told you she was probably going to want to talk to me, you know, and you didn't listen to me as usual." She was scolding her dad, that kind of made her feel a little better. "You never listen, Jim."

"I always listen," her dad chuckled, and there was the usual smacking sound of their kisses, and her mother's laughter again. "You know, it wouldn't be like this if you'd given in a little quicker." She knocked again to make her point and her dad outwardly groaned as he threw something (probably a pillow) at the door. "You can't wait for another ten minutes, Katie?"

She laughed out loud and snorted, leaning against the doorframe. Maybe she'd gone a little far with the last knock. She was the one listening in on them now.

The door opened a second later and her mother came out, a robe tightly secured around her. "Sorry. Your dad has been working late all week." Melinda laughed and wrapped her arm around her. "He's a little cranky, but it's not because of you."

"I know," she rolled her eyes and leaned down to hug her mom. She didn't know how much longer she could hold all of this in. Her tears threatened to spill again, but she took a deep breath in. "I just needed to talk to you."

Her mom slowly ran her hand up and down her back. "I know, that's why I'm here baby girl."

She slowly nodded her head against her shoulder as she felt a few tears trickle out.

The bedroom door opened again and her dad surfaced, wrapping his arm around both of them. "I didn't mean to upset you if I did, Katiebug. I'm not mad."

She pulled back and shook her head, hugging her dad properly. "It's not you, dad. It's everything this past week has been so hard and I don't know what I'm gonna do about it."

Jim's expression softened. "Katie, when I lost my brother it made me realize that life is short and if... something happens to me or your mom, we want to be able to know you're okay… that you're happy. If Ned makes you happy, then we're happy. We all know he messed up, but people can try and fix their mistakes, can't they?"

"Dad, I'm okay, and usually I'm pretty happy. I promise." Katie hated hearing her father talk like this. She never thought about losing him or her mother, at least not now. She didn't like that image of them being gone in her head. She bit her lip, fighting back tears. "You don't need to worry about me."

"We do worry about you, all the time, Katie." Her dad reminded her and pressed a kiss to her forehead as they pulled back from their embrace. "Just because you're older now and grown up doesn't mean we don't stop worrying just as much as we did when you were Lana's size."

"I know," she said, nudging his side. "But this is different. If I let Ned keep acting like this, aren't we just circling the drain like Toby and I did?"

"Every relationship is different sweetheart because every person is unique in their own way. How did you feel when you said I love you for the first time to Ned and he said it back?" Her dad has always had a way with words, a way of asking the right questions to get through to her just like her mother did.

She smiled and thought back to when she and Ned had first said those words to each other. It had been kind of early, but they'd known each other forever so it hadn't mattered. She'd felt good, and so happy when Ned said it to her. When he had said it, in a hushed, nervous way, she'd remembered her heart feeling full. She remembered almost crying before she hugged him and pulled him close. She remembered the ghost of his lips on her forehead as she'd said it back.

"I felt good, almost at home. I was really happy for the first time in a while," she explained simply, feeling her cheeks blush a little just thinking about it again.

"Then hold onto that and get through this rough patch. You shouldn't just give up," her dad reminded her and gave her a hug on his way back into the bedroom.

"Did he just give me advice and leave?" She laughed and wiped away a fallen tear from her cheek.

"That's your father's style," Melinda shrugged and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "C'mon, let's go talk now."

* * *

After telling her mother everything, Melinda was quiet for a good ten minutes. Instead of having an immediate reply like she usually did, she watched as her mother leaned onto the counter across from her. Katie took the time to sip her tea that had mostly gone untouched until now until her mother finally spoke.

"I hate to say it, but what Olivia said makes sense," Melinda said, setting her mug down and wrapping her hand around Katie's. "Ned loves you and cherishes his job, and he's about to possibly lose both right now. I think he understands what he's done."

Katie stared at her. She was not expecting that at all. "But mom, after everything-"

"Katherine Ann," Melinda sighed, smiling sadly as she patted her hand. "Didn't you tell me not too long ago that you just wanted to be happy?"

Katie rubbed her eyes wearingly. "What if things don't work out for us?"

Melinda took her hand. "Baby, you can't let Ned dictate your life choices. I know that you've loved him forever and this is the first time things have ever been like this between you two in your life, but you can't let him keep you from anything. I know that Ned can make you happy. I've seen it. And if Ned puts in the effort, like he always tries to do for you, and it still doesn't work. Well, then, maybe it's not him that's the problem."

"You think it's me?" She asked.

"No, I think that it could be any number of things," Melinda explained simply. "But I know you don't want to be alone and single forever."

"I hadn't thought too much about forever." She muttered. "But thanks for that thought now."

"If Ned makes you happy, Katherine." The use of her full name pulled her attention and her mother's hand squeezed her cheek. "If Ned's the one who's going to take care of you like your father does me," Melinda smiled at her and came around to kiss her cheek and give her a hug, "then I think Ned deserves another chance. Don't you?"

Her phone rang again, for the tenth time that night because of the person calling. She hesitated her hand over the decline button as her mom rose her eyebrow at her.

"Okay. I'll talk to him," she muttered.

Melinda pressed a kiss to her shoulder and squeezed her from behind again. "See, that wasn't hard to do. Just listen to him, okay? Be honest."

"Yeah," she pressed answer and brought her phone to her ear. "Night, mom. I love you."

"Night, baby," Melinda whispered and kissed her cheek before she headed toward the stairs.

Even though Katie had answered, Ned was silent. He usually was when he didn't know what to say during a time like this.

"You finally answered," Ned sighed. "I didn't think you would."

"I wasn't going to," she muttered, sipping her tea.

"Then what made you?" He asked, softly.

"My mom," she wasn't going to hold anything back this time. Her mom was right. She had to be honest if they were going to fix anything between them. "My dad's advice helped too."

"At least you're honest," he muttered.

"Hey, Ned, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I reacted earlier. Everything just kind of came out when I saw you," she whispered.

"You really don't have anything to be sorry about. That was…all me, Katie. I was so dumb." He sighed. "I don't know what I was thinking. I'm so sorry that I hurt you."

"No, it wasn't that stupid, Ned." She sighed and leaned into the chair she was sitting in. "I should have made more of an effort to make sure you were okay. I knew how invested you were in this case."

"Don't make excuses for me," he groaned, and she could hear his voice break. "You shouldn't be making excuses for me. I should be able to separate my feelings from my cases at work, this was on me."

She was quiet and took a final sip of her tea. "I get it, Ned."

He sighed. "Being apart really plays on all kinds of insecurities, huh?"

"Yeah," she agreed sadly. "It does."

"I just wanted you to know that you mean the world to me, and I'm really sorry that I made you worry about me these past few days." He explained, sighing. "Do you think I could come in and talk to you?"

She turned around to look at the front door and there was the shadow of a figure outside. "Have you been outside the whole damn time?" She was already walking to the door, unlatching the top deadbolt lock that her dad had installed long before she could remember, and then the one on the door.

"Not the whole time. I just got here, but it's damn cold, Katie." He said on the phone as she pulled open the door.

And then there's Ned. Real-life Ned, standing right in front of her.

He was wearing that charcoal grey coat that she liked. She'd bought it for him. Damn, it was almost like it was made for him.

"Hi," he smiled lightly.

"Hi," she returned, still trying to grasp the fact that he's actually here. "What are you doing here?"

"I finally got the courage to listen to your voicemails after you left. I got a new phone," he stopped to run his fingers through his hair. "I broke the other one."

She looked away and itched her neck. "Oh, those… you did?"

"I'm sorry, Katie." He broke down, his tears spilling, and it was the first time she'd really seen him cry like this since they were kids. "I'm so sorry."

"Ned, it's not that simple." She sighed, letting him in and closing the door. "You can't just say I'm sorry and everything is fixed." She turned to walk back into the kitchen, putting her cup in the sink before switching the lights off and going toward the door that led to the basement. "Aren't you coming?"

"Oh, I didn't think you'd want me down there." He muttered, coming into the kitchen a few moments later.

"Ned, I'm not a monster. I love you and if you want to stay, you can, but things aren't fixed." She sighed, walking down the stairs.

Katie heard him follow her down the steps and even pulled the basement door closed. "I love you too. What can I do?" He said, voice right behind her.

"I think the best thing for us is some time apart to think once I go home," she sat down on the bed and flattened her hands on her thighs. "It will be good for both us. It will give you time to straighten things at work, I know things are a little messy there right now and it will give me the time to heal and forgive you."

He nodded and came to sit with her. "If that's what you need, I'll do anything," he reached out to hold her hand, curling his fingers around her hand.

"As much as it hurt, I think it's what we need." She said softly and squeezed his hand. "Will you still stay tonight?"

He nodded and smiled, his other hand coming to caress her cheek. "I'm not going anywhere."

"One more night," she whispered as she grabbed the oversized lapels on his coat and pulled him to her, kissing him soundly.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Random thought, but Law and Order: Special Victims Unit can be so dark sometimes, like oh my… Like sometimes I need a break from it for a day and have to watch something uplifting or funny haha. Hope you all are enjoying this story so far :) xx Mariah**

* * *

Katie heard him follow her down the steps and pull the basement door closed. "I love you too. What can I do?" He said, voice right behind her.

"I think the best thing for us is some time apart," she sat down on the bed and flattened her hands on her thighs. "It will be good for both us. It will give you time to straighten things at work, I know things are a little messy there right now and will give me time to forgive you."

He nodded and came to sit with her. "If that's what you want," he reached out to hold her hand, curling his fingers around her hand.

She squeezed his hand. "Will you still stay?"

He nodded and smiled, his other hand coming to caress her cheek. "I'm not going anywhere."

"One more night," she whispered as she grabbed the oversized lapels on his coat and pulled him to her, kissing him soundly.

He kissed back, his fingers flexing on the back of her neck, moving up to tangle in her hair. It's the first in a long time that they've kissed in a while. Ned broke away first, pulling back slightly. The tips of their noses were still touching, just barely, and he turned his head a fraction to rub hers against his.

"What are you doing, Katie?" he whispered, so softly that she wondered if he thought he was dreaming and didn't want to wake himself up.

She didn't know what she was doing. She was still mad. So mad at him. But she loved him too much for her own good, and she wanted him.

"I want to have sex," she whined a little, hoping she'd get her way like she usually did. "Don't you?"

"I always do, but I don't know," he answered, eyes searching her face. He gave her a small, pained smile, then reluctantly pulled his hand out of hers and turned away. "I need a breather."

She sat on the edge of the bed, her nails digging into the covers as she stared off into space. The voice in her head was screaming, reminding her that this very well could be the very last time she and Ned would ever be alone like this.

Alone, as a couple.

She pushed those thoughts away; the realization was far too painful to deal with now. She turned to look at where he was sitting at the foot of the bed, his back tense as his hands pressed against the mattress.

She slid over, sitting next to him. At first, she wrapped her arm around him, trying to get him to relax, but he didn't. He didn't even lean into her.

"Ned," she whispered into his ear, rubbing her hands over his chest. "Talk to me." He looked up, just enough for her to get a good look at him, but didn't say anything. She looked into his eyes, searching them for what she always saw. The softness, the kindness that was entirely him enveloped her. "This matters to me too, you have to know that."

When he was still quiet, hadn't said a word, she sighed.

"Ned, please." She said the words so softly; such a quiet plea for him like that drove him mad.

His lips were on hers again, kissing her, his hands in her hair, on her breasts, tugging at the waistline of her pants while she undid his. He could not stop touching her in his frenzy, and she didn't want him to. She never wanted him to stop. For once, she wanted to lose herself in this. Completely forget about all other thoughts and problems. She wanted to lose herself in him, with him, because she knew it could just well be the last time.

* * *

When Katie woke, she rolled over and expected to find the warmth of Ned's body next to hers, but instead found cold, empty sheets. The pillow smelled like him and she pressed her face into it as she pulled the blanket back up to her shoulders. Her eyes were against the idea of being open so quickly, but she rose her head slowly, rubbing her blurry eyes clear and looking at the clock.

It was almost nine in the morning, so she knew better than to think Ned had stuck around. He had to be at work by now, but what irked her was that he had left without a goodbye. He had never been that type of guy, at least not with her.

She took a deep breath and grabbed her phone, dialing his number. She had no idea what she was actually going to say to him, but she needed to know that they were okay

Her heart's racing as it rang. But it just rang and ran and then went to voicemail.

Maybe he had been right to pull away at first. Maybe she shouldn't have pushed. There were, like, a million reasons why they wouldn't work out, right?

But when she tried to think of some examples, just a few of those million, all that came up was a gnawing feeling of regret. Doing this long distance thing with Ned was so much harder than she had ever expected.

When she tried to call him again, he still didn't answer and she sighed.

Why wasn't he answering? Why did everything about life have to be so damn complicated?

There should be a handbook out there to help guide everyone through some of the tougher times. She tried to mentally catalog all of the advice she's ever heard, whether it was from her parents, friends or some dumb column in the same magazine as those arbitrary number of sex tips.

But Katie was so lost in this department that she can't bear to think about it for too long.

Love might be the most confusing thing ever. Apparently, long distance will never work out, so don't bother. And no one ended up happy with their first love, either.

Nope, that's never happened.

It's apparently written in the relationship bylaws that women have to date an acceptable number of guys before finding the right one, but the number can't be too small or she's settling, and the number can't be too big or she's a slut.

Women should also be a certain age before falling in love; not too young, because then she doesn't know what love truly is, and not too old because then she isn't as beautiful.

A good couple also shouldn't meet for the first time in a bar. Or online. Or at work.

And women should seamlessly straddle the fine line of being supportive but not losing herself. The relationship had to always be well-adjusted and comfortable, but it should still be exciting.

Ugh, it was all a mess. Just like her life and her relationship with Ned.

* * *

It was the afternoon, and Katie still hadn't talked to Ned or moved from where she laid in bed. Well, except to put some clothes on in case anyone decided to come downstairs.

No one had yet. Maybe her family was giving her space for once.

Mackenzie was looking sheepish when she came down the stairs around one in the afternoon. She eyed her suspiciously over her shoulder but didn't say anything.

The almost ten-year-old whistled quietly to herself (just like their mother did when she occupied herself with a task) as she made her way to the bed, and her fingers were locked together behind her back in a telltale display of guilt.

"What'd you do?" Katie asked as she rolled over.

"Now don't be mad," the blonde whispered, chewing on her lip.

"What did you do?" She asked.

Mackenzie bit her bottom lip nervously before finally met her sister's eyes. "I talked to Ned today."

At this rate, it seemed like everyone else will have seen or talked to him before she had the chance. It may have only been one person, but it scared her more than her first reaction was to screech, "Tell me everything."

But she had to play it cool in front of her little sister. "Oh? How?" She asked. "How is he?"

"I went with mom to the shop for a little bit and he came by to see Auntie Delia, but he looked kind of sad. He wasn't in the mood to talk." Mackenzie sighed. "What is happening with you guys? I know everyone knows, but no one will tell me the whole truth, not even Aaron."

"That's because it's complicated, Mack. Not everything in life can just be summed up like that," she sighed. "When you're older you'll understand."

"Everyone always says that Katie, now you too?" Mackenzie laid next to her, she felt the bed shift.

"Mackenzie, I swear to god, if you don't get out of here-" She started to yell, but then saw her little sister's face and stopped.

"You should just get back together or whatever, okay? Because I'm really starting to worry about you, big sis." Mackenzie's voice broke at that, and there it was, Katie's worst fear realized. She never wanted to hurt her little sister. "And I don't know what to do to help you because I'm only about to be ten! Why is everyone always making everything harder than it has to be?" As Mack dried her eyes, she couldn't bear to look at her anymore.

"Getting back with Ned isn't going to magically fix everything," she admitted softly. "I don't know what's wrong with us. I don't know what I'm doing and you're too young to be talking with me about this stuff and you know it." She can feel her throat constricting as she tried to fight back tears.

She was so sick of crying. She'd been crying for days.

"But I'm so tired of fighting, Mackenzie." She turned to stare at the ceiling as Mackenzie wrapped her arms around her. "I just want to be happy."

Mack sighed, and her warm breath tickled the side of her neck. "I'm sorry for hurting your feelings. I just thought…if you realized how much you still wanted to be with Ned, you could just go to him and then everything would be okay again." She gently ran her hand down her arm, a calming gesture they both learned from their mother, and hugged her tighter "I just want you to be happy too."

Katie sniffled but tried to compose herself, if only for her sister's sake.

"What did you talk to Ned about?" she asked after a few minutes.

"Not a lot," Mack shrugged. "I didn't want to make him uncomfortable. I think he was in a hurry back to work too. He really loves you."

"Oh yeah? Did he tell you that?" She asked, laughing a little. How could he love her and leave her like he had this morning?

She could feel Mack's shrug. "Well, yeah," she said. "He said that things were complicated, but he loves you."

With those words, she turned back toward the pillow that kind of still smelled like him. It was a mix of her shampoo smell too now.

"You really miss him that much already, huh?" This voice was someone different.

Katie turned to see their mother there, staring her down nervously as she ran her hands up and down her arms.

"Why have been hiding away down here?" Melinda finally asked.

"No one seemed to care until now apparently," she turned her head away and closed her eyes. She thought maybe she could sleep this conversation away.

"I was just waiting to see how long you were going to stay down here," Melinda laughed, coming closer and moving onto the bed next to her. "Go on up, Kenz, dad's making lunch. I need to talk to your sister alone."

"Mom, I'm old enough," Mackenzie whined.

"Not quite old enough for this conversation, Mack," Melinda's voice was soft and she could hear whispering and Mackenzie's giggle as their mother probably made some promise to do something with her later. "How's that sound?"

"Okay, deal," Mackenzie sighed, a little more cheerful than before. "Feel better, Katie."

Once she heard her little sister's quick footsteps the stairs, she sighed and turned toward her mother's figure, which was sitting up in the bed. "He was here last night," she muttered.

"I saw him on his way out this morning," Melinda said with a shrug of her shoulders. "He looked a little spooked when I said his name like he was trying to make sure no one saw that he was down here with you."

"Yeah, I bet," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "He didn't even say goodbye to me this morning, not that I blame him. I went to far last night. I ruined everything."

"Ruined everything how?" Melinda asked.

"We had sex," she sighed.

"Oh, Katie. No, you didn't." Melinda sunk into the bed next to her and wrapped her arms around her. "That almost always makes things worse in these situations."

"I did. I was selfish and I wanted to even after he pulled away and said we shouldn't, but it was so good mom." She groaned and covered her eyes with her hands.

"Oh, Katie, my innocent girl, sex like that is always good," Melinda said knowingly as she leaned down to kiss her forehead. "It's too bad Ned isn't ugly or something. He'd probably be easier to forget or move on from if he was."

Again, Katie laughed despite herself. Despite everything. She turned into her and hugged her mother tightly. "I'm glad I've got you to make me feel better, mom. Thank you."

"You always will, my sweet girl," Melinda said.

"Can we stay like this for a while?" She asked softly, lifting her head to look at her.

Her mother's arms wrapped back around her as she settled her chin against the top of her head. "Of course, we can sweetheart," Melinda whispered.


	17. Chapter 17

The next day, Katie reluctantly went out to lunch with her mother. After repeatedly glancing over at the precinct while picking at her salad, Katie decided to suck it up and go to try and talk to Ned after she and her mom parted ways.

She knew she had to see him before she went home tomorrow. She just couldn't leave things between them like this, but spent an inordinate amount of time getting prep talked by her mother and then freshening up to make sure she didn't look terrible before she went over there.

Finally she neared the front entrance and she slowly made her way inside, her heart racing against her chest. The station was bustling as usual, many different people sitting by desks talking to different detectives and policemen.

When Katie didn't spot Ned as quick as she'd like, she was about to spin around and run away but saw Jamison stand up and walk toward her. She cursed herself for not leaving quicker. Now she had to at least talk to one person.

"Hey Katie, are you looking for Ned? I didn't know you were in town." The usual stone faced man smiled warmly at her as he ushered her toward his desk.

"Yeah," she said softly. "It's spring break. Last day before I go home."

Jamison nodded. "He should be around here somewhere," he said. "I think Cap finally took him off traffic duty." Once Jamison spotted him, he pointed him out to her. "He's back by the vending machines."

Nothing about Ned's partner's disposition indicated that he knew things were complicated between them.

Thank god for that.

Katie walked through the back of the station, feeling a few people glance over at her as stopped in the doorway that lead into vending machine area. Her palms were already unnaturally sweaty, but when she saw Ned, it was worse. He was just around the corner, his back to her as he crouched down to grab something from one, but he didn't seem to know she's there yet.

She walked toward him as he stood, pulling out his bag of cashews. Deep in concentration as he opened it, he still doesn't acknowledge her presence.

It's funny to see him thinking so intently, especially knowing how much he despised the selection of snacks the station. He once said that it was like trying to pick between stale pretzels and semi-good nuts.

"Hey," she finally said, and he jumped a little at the sound of her voice.

"Hey," he said as he looked over his shoulder and tipped the bag back a little.

As he turned, he just stared at her and she fully took in his appearance. He looked awful like Mackenzie had said, with dark circles under his eyes, which even his sullen expression can't hide. He probably hadn't shaved the last few days, considering his face was covered in strong stubble. She almost felt bad for being so determined to look nice when they finally came face-to-face.

"How are you doing?" She asked softly, her hands fidgeting anxiously in front of her.

"I'm fine," he said unfeelingly, and walked past her.

She grabbed his hand as he passed by, stopping. "Uh, I thought maybe we should talk," she told him, but all of his attention was on the cashews. Was he really that mad at her? "I didn't think we should still be like in his funk before I went home tomorrow." She tried again.

When he looked up at her, she's taken back by his scowl. "Yeah, well, I'm glad you're thinking of me not and just what you want." He pulled away from her and moved away.

She spun on her heel to follow him."Hey, wait," she called out, and when everyone turned to look at them, she froze. She didn't know what t say with an audience staring her down. "Ned, please don't be like this."

"What?" he asked expectantly, but she didn't know what to say and he just looked so annoyed with no answer from her. "What are you here for, Katie, huh?" He pressed her for answers. "What do you want?"

She had absolutely no idea why she was here. He'd just been on her mind constantly. "I just wanted to know why didn't you say goodbye the other day," she admitted and all eyes were off them.

Apparently it wasn't anything juicy enough for them.

"I didn't think I needed to. I was in a hurry," he muttered, walking past her and going to sit down at the nearest desk. She watched as he grabbed he picture of them and threw it down into the top drawer and slammed it closed.

This wasn't going at all how she thought it would.

Granted she didn't spend a lot of time planning out any particular scenarios, but she didn't expect his anger. She was prepared for tears, even hoping for his compassion and comfort when he saw how much she was hurting too, but she hadn't seen this coming.

She's suddenly very aware that this was probably a defining moment and how she proceeded was going to have a profound impact on the rest of their relationship. She could leave, right now, and things would continue as they were for now or she can cowboy up and talk to him.

He huffed in frustration as she came up to place her hand on his shoulder and she repeated her plea to him. "Can we go somewhere and talk?"

"About what?" He sighed, turning in his chair.

"Us," she said, shrugging helplessly. "About what happened the last time we were together. I thought it would be better for us to talk now then at Mack's party tonight, you are coming right?"

She could see the internal debate, but he finally relented and his eyes softened. "Yeah, of course. Mack asked me yesterday."

She assumed he'd lead her back to the vending machines or the break room, but he just led her outside quickly. "So talk," he said once they were out the front doors.

Katie was starting to get pissed off. She knew that she had hurt him when she'd asked for a break, but this wasn't her Ned and she couldn't take much more of it.

Where was she supposed start, anyway? She was still too embarrassed to talk about the last night they'd spent together, and too confused about everything else to start sorting through it all.

Maybe it was time she apologized for something. She knew she'd hurt him, that was for sure.

"I am so sorry that I hurt you," she whispered. That was such a lame opening and he probably already tuned her out, but she was going to go out on a limb. "I never meant to pressure you that night and I shouldn't have." He just laughed bitterly, and that did nothing to curb her rising temper. "Jesus, Ned, I'm trying here!"

He was shaking his head, but the cruel smile fell from his face. "All right," he said. "Then tell me the truth, okay? When did things change for you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Was it something in particular? Or…or was it just everything adding up?" He continued to shake his head, ignoring her confusion. "And why couldn't you have talked to me about it first? Maybe I could have done something. Maybe I could have changed something." It's like the anger was draining out of him and all that's left was his sad shell. His shoulders slumped visibly as he looked down at his hands. "Could I have changed something?"

She was starting to think she preferred a pissed off Ned to this version.

"I know I can be a lot to handle," he admitted softly then after a few moments of silence. "My job is intense and we live far apart."

She could rush to placate him, but the truth was, he's not wrong. But still, he wasn't just his job and a lot to handle.

"It's just…no one's ever really made me feel like this before, and then to have it be you?" He nearly choked on that last word, and then he finally pulled his eyes up enough to meet hers, and then they darted away again.

Oh god, why couldn't he just go back to being an asshole? This was undoubtedly her Ned, wearing his heart right there on his sleeve, but she's not emotionally equipped to deal with this right now.

"I applied for a transfer to Rockland before everything went down like we planned, and I got in." She kind of blurted it out, even surprising herself, but yes, she'll take admitting this over the alternative.

"What?" he asked with a furrowed brow.

"I, uh, applied for my transfer to Rockland at the end of the last semester. I wanted to surprise you." She grabbed the sleeve of her shirt and watched as she twisted it between her fingers, too ashamed to look at him. "But then all this happened and I got the email this morning. I got in."

He sighed as he moved to stand in front of her. "You applied there so you could be with me?"

"Yes and no," she answered honestly. "It was for me, too. I miss Grandview."

He nodded in understanding. "Yeah. I get that." They're silent again, neither sure what to do next.

"No one's ever made me feel like this either, Ned." She whispered, closing her eyes. She leaned back against the building, looking over at him. "I'm sorry, but I'm not the only one at fault here."

"Yeah, I know." He sighed.

"Are you really gonna come to the party tonight?" she asked again. "Because if you're not then you should call Mack…"

"I don't know for sure work is pretty crazy and I can't afford to take any losses right now," he shrugged, running his hands through his hair like he always did. "I probably will. Mack or your mom is just going to track me down if I don't."

She smiled at that because she knew it's true. "So I'll see you tonight?"

"See you tonight, hopefully," he returned, the barest hint of a smile, too.

When he turned to leave, her voice stopped him, "Hey, Ned."

"Yeah?" He stopped and looked up at her.

"I know you told me already, but why'd you leave yesterday morning without saying anything?" She asked, hoping he'd give her a real answer and not some pissed-off one. "That's not like you."

He stepped toward her and slipped his hand into hers. "I'm sorry about that. I really was in a hurry, but I was also just stuck in my own head. I didn't think-"

She shook her head. "I overthink everything anyway, Ned. I thought it was good, that everything would be fine, but then I woke you and you'd already left. There wasn't a text or a note. It was like nothing had happened the night before." She laid everything out on the table, her feelings needing to go somewhere. "And if it was nothing to you, then it was just casual sex, which to me is..." She let out a breath that she'd been holding in and shook her head. "It's not something I want."

He brought her hand to his mouth and wrapped his arms around her in a quick hug. "Never. I would never want you to think it was like that," he whispered. "I was just angry and late for work."

"It causes me pain to watch us do this to each other, but I should get going." She said, squeezing his hand. "I have to help set up back at the house and you should probably go back to work if you're going to come."

"Yeah, I should." He said, backing away with a smile on his lips. "I'll see you later, Katie."

It's sprinkling lightly when she started to leave the precinct, and she inhaled the scent of the rain against cement. She doesn't feel better or worse. Nothing was really resolved. But at least they were talking.

It was a good start.


	18. Chapter 18

When Katie returned to the city, to distract herself from what was going on with Ned she called together all of her friends. They were going to go out.

Olivia, Hannah and herself had all been trying to find out where the best parties were for the past few hours while they got ready together. They were torn between wanting to go to a house party in Queens or a frat party just a few blocks away.

"Frat parties are like hot guy central," Olivia begged. "C'mon Katie, it'll help you forget about him for one damn night."

"Liv has a valid point," Hannah said as she came up to her with a sparkling dress over her arm. "You've been wallowing with depressing music and are in the same sweats you drove in. I know you just showered this morning, so please just put this dress on and come with us."

"It's not like I'm not going to do anything," she sighed, taking it off the hanger and holding it up to herself.

She unzipped the dress and slipped it on as she went into her close, coming out of her in the knee-high blue dress. It was sequined and too tight for her usual style, but both Hannah and Liv had insisted that she had to look hot for the photos she was going to post.

She liked the idea of posting photos that she would look hot in. Ned would probably see them and she liked the idea of making him hot for her, all the way in Grandview with a few pictures of her in a short dress.

At least then she would be on his mind.

"I don't like this dress. It's itchy and so tight," she said turning around for Hannah to unzip her. "I think I have a better idea. Something more my style."

Hannah quickly pulled the zipper down for her and she slid out of it quickly before going toward her dresser. She pulled open the bottom drawer and pulled out a leather skirt and slid it on and pulled the zipper that was on the side up. She went over to her closet and pulled out a white v-neck shirt.

"Do you think I should stay with this bra or something sexier to peek out?" She asked, not quite feeling the baby blue one she had on. She'd gotten it as a surprise for Ned's birthday last summer because blue was his favorite color.

"Isn't that your sexy bra?" Hannah asked.

"You only have one?" Olivia gasped. "I have like seven."

"This is the expensive sexy one," she sighed. "But I don't want to wear it. I got to wear for Ned."

"Yeah, no. Take it off." Olivia said, going to her top drawer. She quickly pulled out a red one. "You are so wearing this."

"No way. That has a choker and it was a gag gift Hannah gave me at my grad party," she rolled her eyes and grabbed it from her.

"I think it's a good idea, Katie. The photos will look super hot," Hannah said.

* * *

Ned doesn't see the photos right away.

After all, with just getting back to regular duty at work and not one but two ongoing robbery investigations concerning him and his partner, he simply didn't have the time to be constantly checking up on social media. That and he rarely thought to update any of his pages.

But then, for whatever reason, he decided to log back onto Facebook at two thirty in the morning.

It's only a few moments after typing in Katie's name that he saw that she'd hid their relationship status from her page that he realized what a mistake that was.

This made everything a little more real. Even if it was just social media.

When Ned looked back on what happened next, he would blame his actions on the fact that it was two-thirty-two in the morning. Really, it's because, beneath that five-pointed star on his badge and all the bravery that's supposed to go along with it, Ned Banks was kind of a glutton for punishment when he and Katie were fighting.

So against his better judgment, he started scrolling through Katie's profile pictures. Her current one was a picture he had never seen before. It was of Katie, Olivia and Hannah on the couch in her living room with matching smiles and glasses of wine. It was a month old.

The one before was of him and her. He hadn't even realized she'd changed it.

It was from his shield ceremony. He was in full uniform and she was in a thick strapped yellow dress, their arms were tightly wrapped around each other as they smiled for the camera. It was one of his favorite pictures of them together.

The third one was a little older (from her most recent birthday) a big beaming smile as she held her cake up that her dad had made at the cabin that morning for her.

It had been her picture since that morning. The one before was of her on the fourth of july with sparklers in a red bathing suit, and god, he wished he could go back to that day.

Ned chose to ignore the rational part of his brain that was screaming at him to stop. This wasn't going to help him distance himself from her and get better as she'd wanted. Instead, he clicked to the next photo which was a large family picture from the mother's day brunch they all went to.

Further down, further down he goes and the pain started to settle in a very comfortable, almost welcome sort of way. Though the background and the people in her pictures changed, Katie was beautiful and her smile glowing in every single one of them. Just like always.

It's quarter to three when he was looking at pictures from the beginning of the year before. His eyes were red and his right hand had gone numb, but that didn't matter at all.

The photo he's looking at now was of them together. Katie and him, kissing. Going back this far, this wasn't the first photo that he's been featured in but it was the one that he lingered on the most. Every other photo that she's uploaded has rambling captions, going into detail of where she was and who she was with.

But the caption on this particular photo was simple and to the point: "I love him."

And of all the photos she's posted, this was the one she kept as her profile picture for the longest.

Katie had always been sweet like that.

He blinked, surprised when his eyes were wet with tears. If he checked the clock, he'd see that the time was three now and that there was a notification. He clicked on it and it read: one new post from Katie Clancy

So instead he clicked out of the profile pictures and scrolled down to see what she had posted. When he saw the caption: "Be a badass with a good ass", he was excited to see the photo and eagerly pressed on the down arrow on his keyboard quickly.

Anything he was expecting had not been this. Katie was turned to her side in a mirror, showing off her sexy outfit of the night with a peace sign. Her legs were posed and right hand was holding her phone. His eyes traveled up her bare legs and he felt his mouth go dry.

When he was met with the end of her leather black skirt, he realized she was wearing such a low v-neck white top and he could see her bra. That red one with a choker she'd had stuffed in the back of her drawer for so long that he'd almost forgotten the night she'd worn it for him. So that meant everyone could see it. With her turned, he could see the nice curve of her back through the slit in the back of the shirt.

God, she was so hot and by the evil face emoji that was after the caption, she knew it too.

He felt his pants tighten the longer he looked, but he didn't want to look away even if it was really hard to function when he had a constant hard-on.

When he scrolled down, hoping the next picture would be a family picture and calm him down, he hit with another photo, one of her with her back against the wall, legs slightly spread and a sly smile on her lips as she looked at the camera. He knew that look in her eye, that primal, lust-filled look she was giving him through the lens of the camera.

Damn her.

He logged out of Facebook and slowly closed his laptop, letting out a long, ragged sort of sigh.

"I should go to bed," he said to himself and tried to adjust his erection his pajama pants before riding them completely and trying to settle uncomfortably into his boxers.

Instead of seeing darkness, Ned kept seeing Katie in that outfit walking toward him. What he'd give to be at that party or bar she was probably going to.

He didn't realize how starved he'd been for human closeness, for the feel of her beside him in the dark, until he was thinking about it, about bringing her home if they were together right now.

His hand slowly drifted into his boxers as he rubbed himself, letting his eyes fall closed. He wanted to be kissing her right now.

Why couldn't he have just gone to see her instead of getting drunk after the verdict? Why hadn't he just gone to her and let her make him feel better? That would have been the smarter and adult thing to do.

But in his head, he had never been an adult. If he was being honest, he was still thinking about wanting to have sex with her. He wished to hear what sounds Katie never failed to make as he found his way inside of her. He craved to feel her bare skin and the motion of her narrow hips bucking in rhythm with his all while muffling their groans with persistent kisses.

He pulled himself out of his boxer-briefs, pushing his shirt up to his chest. He was half-hard but swelling steadily with thoughts of Katie that he couldn't shake. Reaching over to his nightstand, he pumped some lotion into his hand, then grasped his erection in hand. He began pumping it steadily, smearing the lotion up and down. Once he was fully hard, he inhaled a ragged breath, closed his eyes and unleashed his imagination.

Which was overrun with different memories of Katie. His lips trailing up up legs. Her breasts in his palms and the pinkish brown color of her nipples as he closed his mouth around them. Her hair as he ran his hands through it and that apple shampoo smell it had.

He imagined what she looked like as he'd part her thighs. His fist tightened around himself as he remembered the sight of her shorn curls that she'd trim at the apex of her thighs. He thought about how they felt under his hand, as he slid his fingers through her and sunk his fingers inside her, how wet and hot she felt as she tightened around him. He could remember hearing her moans while he'd use his fingers and mouth against her. he had to let out his own moan as his palm tugged earnestly.

Suddenly, it wasn't his fingers he was imagining inside her; it was him, thrusting into her. He imagined her face, bashfully buried into his shoulder or neck. She was always so beautiful when she blushed. She would grip his shoulders tightly enough that he knew her knuckles whiten from the pressure.

He was squeezing himself and pumping faster, and he could practically can feel her around him just like it was that night in the basement. Her arms were wrapped firmly around him and she's clawing at his back. Their bodies were sweaty and slick; he could feel the wetness seeping out of her. With every thrust, she exhaled or moaned, but they were both basically panting. He remembered feeling exhilarated, weightless.

He came hard at the thought then, grunting softly as he spilled himself on his stomach. His heartbeat thrummed in his ears, and he panted quietly as he reveled in his orgasm, finally blinking his eyes open after a couple minutes as his phone buzzed on the bed beside him.

His stomach immediately dropped with his realization that it was Katie.

How on earth could he talk to her right now?

* * *

The music was loud, pounding against the walls and only revving up the drunk crowds around the frat house. She had only been to a party a few times in high school and still wasn't quite used to the party scene. Katie nursed her warm beer for about a half an hour, wedged uncomfortably on a futon beside Olivia, who was busy flirting with one of the many shirtless guys that had been running amuck.

Another guy, who thankfully had a shirt on that wasn't a graphic t-shirt, approached her at some point and leaned against the armrest. "Having fun?" He asked.

"You sound too sober to be asking me that," she said dryly and took a sour sip of her drink before finally setting it down on the coffee table. She was officially never trying tap beer ever again.

"I'm just the sober friend tonight, making sure everyone is having fun and no one gets aggressive." He said simply.

She expected him to buy that lame excuse? What college guy didn't want to get drunk at their own party? Her face must've given her away because he chuckled.

"Fine," he sighed. "I lost a big poker game last night and had to cut my losses," the guy shrugged, pointing at her drink on the table. "I wouldn't leave that around if I were you. Some guys around here are particularly terrible at messing with girls at parties."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm done with it and not that stupid. It tasted warm and gross anyway," she laughed and smiled at him. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all. "I've never been a big beer fan."

"C'mon, I'll make you a better drink." The guy winked at her and stood, lifting his eyebrows curiously at her. "You coming?"

Liv nudged her with a smile and winked. "He's hot, Katie," her friend said eagerly. "GO!"

She sighed and stood up. "As long as you promise you aren't one of the terrible ones," she said to him.

"I promise," he chuckled.

"Now what's your name, guy who's going to make me a better drink…" She said, following him toward the kitchen where all the booze and cups were.

"It's Jake, nice to meet you… uh, what's your name?" Jake grabbed a purple cup as he looked over at her.

"Katie," she said, leaning against the counter next to him. "Nice to meet you."

* * *

Katie drank way too much at a party. She was not blackout drunk or anything, but she found herself acting a bit more outgoing than she usually would.

She lost track of Jake in the crowd not so long after he made her a drink, mostly with crown apple and some type of cranberry juice. It was pretty good.

She'd found Hannah sometime and learned a card game from some girl who she thought was named Nikki, then played beer pong with some guy named Logan even though she usually only played with Ned back home. She even helped some drunk guy whose name she didn't know pierce his beer with a knife when he started barking about needing to shotgun.

She had a lot of fun. More fun than she'd usually allow herself to have.

It's when she ran back into Jake that it became a problem. He'd been drinking since she last saw him, having left his sober ideals for tonight in the past.

"Hey, I know you!" He grinned, walking toward her. "Did you finish your drink?" His blue eyes were glassy and unfocused and while most of his weight was supported against the concrete wall, then he leaned into her as well for balance for a moment.

"I did," she said, turning slightly as she looked up at him. "You're a lot more drunk than the last time I saw you."

"Yeah, well, I thought I'd have some fun." He smiled, licking his lips as he looked over her. "Are you having more fun?"

She didn't know how she liked this, being this close to another man that wasn't Ned, even with the booze in her system. This was different, something she wasn't used to.

He moved in closer and the heat of his body swallowed her completely, almost more intoxicating than any of the liquor she's consumed. His hand touched her hip then quickly dropped away, leaving the exposed sliver of skin beneath the hem of her shirt on fire.

"Yeah," she said with a slight nod.

She didn't know what else to say with him staring at her like that. She didn't know what she wanted to do. Her body was telling her one thing, on fire with lust for the guy who was pretty much putting himself on the table for her to take, but her heart and mind were telling her another.

She loved Ned. She didn't want to be with anyone else, especially not some random guy she'd just met at a party.

"That's good," he mimicked her nod and then he laughed and she thought he might kiss her.

She definitely wasn't ready for that either.

A kiss was so personal, something she'd only shared with someone she cared about deeply.

They stay in this moment for a while longer, his touch brushing higher up her side, lingering just beneath her ribcage.

She swallowed a large breath and forgot how to breathe.

Then she hiccupped. Loudly.

She turned her head to cover her mouth with her hand and hiccupped again.

Jake blinked rapidly, his concern quickly fading into amusement. "I think you've had enough," he said.

She scowled at him, but her intimidating demeanor was interrupted by another hiccup. "I guess you have a," she hiccupped again. "Point."

"Want me to take you home?" He brushed her hair off her shoulder, his eyes lingering there with his fingers for a moment before he looked back up at her.

"I have a… boyfriend." She said softly.

Even if she and Ned were on a break, he was still her boyfriend and had her heart.

She could see the disappointment on his face and he nodded, suddenly a little soberer as he stood up straight. "Is he here?" He asked

"Sadly no," she sighed. "Long-distance."

He chuckled. "Sounds like fun."

"Not all the time," she turned away and leaned against the wall next to him. "But I love him, so it's worth it."

"Better be," he smiled. "I'd give anything to have a girl like you. Can I give you a ride home?"

"Haven't you been drinking?" She asked.

"I shotgunned a beer and it was all in my head for a bit." He argued and led her toward the door. "I tried to even out with water."

She shrugged. "Good enough for me." She said. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

After Jake brought her out to his car, she gave him directions to his building. It wasn't long before they got there, and he pulled off in front of the building and parked.

"Let me walk you up to your door," he said, taking his keys out of the ignition.

They both got out of the car and Jake rushed up to help Katie onto the curb since it was particularly icy this time of year. He didn't know how much she'd had to drink either, which had been quite a lot.

"You're sweet, Jake. You don't have to come up if you don't want." She said, grabbing her keys from out of her purse to let herself into the building, holding the door open for him to come in behind her.

"Just want to make sure you get up safely. My mom would be mad if I didn't," he said, following her toward the elevator.

"Then the least I can do is make you a cup of coffee, it'll help even you the beer a little more." She said, pressing the seven button as they both relaxed against the elevator wall.

"I'd love some coffee," he smiled and the elevator doors closed.

When Katie finally closed her apartment door behind Jake after a cup of coffee, she sighed and leaned back against the door. She felt guilty for having him over.

For liking him in that way just a little. For almost wanting to kiss him.

Was Ned feeling that way about other women? Should she even feel bad?

She walked over to her kitchen, seeing the clock read just a little after three and grabbed her phone off the counter. After seeing that not only had both Hannah and Olivia hadn't replied to her check-in texts, she had fully intended on calling them both but had only called Hannah.

When didn't answer and while scrolling to find Olivia's name, she came across Ned's first and pressed on it. Her finger lingered over his phone number for a moment before she pressed on it and brought her phone to her ear.

When he didn't answer, she sighed and hung up before she could leave him a voicemail. She didn't have anything that was worth talking about further. She just kind of wanted to talk to him, but threw it up to how much she'd drunk.

She needed to sleep it off. She'd probably feel better in the morning.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Have you ever fell into a hole of stalking someone on Facebook or Instagram? Well, if you are thinking no, you suck. I felt like it was only fun if I had Ned and Katie do it to each other haha. Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Katie didn't go to sleep. Instead, she finished off the rest of a bottle of wine in the fridge and cyber stalked Ned.

Here's everything she'd found:

\- Ned was randomly posting how long he ran from his runner's app, which was a lot, and it made her think of him looking sweaty and gorgeous.

\- He met at Village Java with some 'Jasmine Herns' who checked in with him.

\- According to Jasmine's page she "liked" almost every movie and book imaginable.

\- She had 2,472 friends.

\- She recently posted a picture of her and Ned at Village Java.

A selfie and she was there with him again? Were they sleeping together? How did they meet?

She knew she was letting it get to her head (the liquor wasn't helping) and that they weren't sleeping together.

She tipped back the wine bottle one last time and drank the last bit as she compulsively scrolled through Jasmine's timeline again. The girl had her entire Facebook set to public, for god's sake.

What kind of person does that?

Her wall was littered with messages and tagged photos. Of course, Katie shamefully studied each one. She's…kind of pretty? Maybe? Her first instinct was that Jasmine a bit plain and even a little chubby, but she wasn't going to let her inner mean girl out. Then she nearly bit through her lip when she saw that, according to some online quiz, Jasmine's celebrity look-alike was Halle Berry.

Were those things even right? She ignored the extra blinking she was doing to keep herself awake. She kept scrolling.

God, her breasts were massive. Like giant melons straining against every shirt in her wardrobe.

Were hers like that? God, did she put herself out there like this?

She hated herself for what she's doing and what she's thinking, but it's like she can't help it. She has to scroll herself into thinking they're definitely not naked in his apartment right now, and there's no way he's motorboating those ginormous breasts that very second.

She took a breath, chiding herself for being so ridiculous. She knew Ned would never sleep with someone else right now. It's just the alcohol filling her head with ideas, was all.

She's only human.

She loved Ned and Ned loves her, she's sure of that. And Jasmine seemed like a perfectly nice girl, and so what if she had basketball breasts and they got coffee a few times?

She closed out the window with Jasmine's Facebook to looked back at Ned's. He didn't have any new recent activity; the poor guy probably didn't have time for anything like that anyway, since he's working so hard he couldn't even call her when they weren't on a break.

She smiled at the In a Relationship with Katie Clancy under his profile pic and then hit the home button to check out her newsfeed before getting ready for bed.

Ned Banks was tagged in a photo.

It's the very first thing that loaded. She clicked on his grinning face, but instead of just a photo of him like she'd thought, it was a group photo.

A night out with the guys from work - drinks at Moe's! –with Ned Banks, Peter Stone, and Hector Ramos.

Updated less than a minute ago.

She very calmly took in a deep breath as she looked at the arm that was draped around Ned. So Jasmine was his coworker. It kind of made her feel better to know she'd never heard anything interesting about her. She clicked the back arrow.

So she'll kill him. She'll drive to Grandview, kill Ned, and then be back in time for her morning class, right?

Drinks. With that woman.

Ugh, after she killed him, she'll probably have to kill Jasmine too. She's even tempted to take out the four people that have already 'liked' the photo. She rolled her eyes when she saw one of them was Delia. Of course.

God, she needed more wine.

* * *

"Would you rather it was someone you knew?" Her mom asked her, yawning on the other end.

Katie hadn't slept a wink. It's been about four hours since she saw that photo and she can't let it go. Calls with her mom were usually upbeat unless they were ghostly or about Ned nowadays. But today she can't stop going on about Ned and him going out for drinks with some hot girl and coworkers.

"Or even dinner?" Melinda continued. "Come on, drinks with coworkers is hardly anything. There are no implications with that. It could be innocent."

"There's nothing innocent about anything with an attractive member of the opposite sex when you're in a long-distance relationship and on a break." There's some sound reason for her mom to chew on.

"Have you stopped thinking about this yet?" Melinda asked.

Barely, she thought. "No," she sighed. "I feel terrible. I keep thinking about almost wanting to kiss someone at a party and then I see this. Should I feel bad?"

"Feel bad? Never, Katie. Don't feel bad because of Ned Banks, that's for damn sure." Her mom was suddenly alert. Her morning coffee must've kicked in. "So… why don't you update your Facebook with something to make him jealous."

"I already did," she sighed, shaking her head. "Haven't you seen it yet? I bet grandma texted you that she's worried about me because of it."

"I haven't had the chance. You called me before I even had a chance to look at my phone this morning sweet pea," Melinda yawned again, then was giggling. "You definitely made him jealous, probably turned him on too. I mean, I'm blushing."

"Thanks, mom." She laughed.

* * *

That night when Ned called, she let him go to voicemail. When her phone buzzed with a text notification a few minutes later, she didn't reach out to grab it on the side table. It buzzed again. Then again.

Katie rolled over and forced herself to sleep. She did check them first thing the next morning, though.

**Ned - March 22nd - 11:39 pm: Hey, you called last night? Did everything turn out okay?**

**Ned - March 22nd - 11:43 pm:**   **I'll be up for a few more hours trying to finish my reports.**

**Ned - March**   **22nd - 2:03 am** : **I really miss you. You looked so hot in those pics. So hot.**

But she had all night to marinate in her anger. She wasn't going to get sucked into that last text. Hell, she still wanted to, but she was so mad at him at this point. Just who does he think he was, anyway?

She pressed on his number anyway and waited for him to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Ned. I just saw your messages." She wanted to sound as pissed as she was but it came out all normal.

"Hey you," he yawned. "I was just trying to catch up with you last night."

"Yeah, well. I'm fine." She said.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and it almost sounded like he'd cleared his throat or something. He was more alert, talking clearly to her. "You sound kind of mad."

"I'm fine," she muttered, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, no. You're definitely mad at me for not answering last night… which I can explain." He sighed.

"Are you sleeping with her?" she asked suddenly, unable to hold back anymore.

"What?" He asked.

"Your super hot Halle Berry lookalike coworker you went out for drinks with last night. Are you sleeping with her because we're on a break?" She asked, flatly.

"Are you seriously asking me that right now?" He sounded pissed.

They've had arguments before but she'd never heard him so upset with her.

It tripped her up and for a second she had a moment of absolute clarity: she was being ridiculous! What was she even doing calling him right now?

But it's out and she couldn't stop now. She fell back on defensiveness. "What else am I supposed to think? You're supposed to be sober."

"Things have been insane lately. I needed a beer and everyone was going out." He scoffed on the other end.

"She was draped over you in that picture Ned." She sighed. "Do you blame me?"

"And you were showing your ass off at some party, Katie." He bit back. "You should know that I would never do something like that to you. You're supposed to trust me!"

"Oh I'm sorry, was I supposed to just enjoy seeing that photo?" She laughed angrily, feeling hot tears spill down her cheeks. "It's not like I posted some picture of and a guy."

"I-I can't believe you right now." He's quiet now, and she can only hear his soft breath over the line. "I'm gonna let you go. I have to get ready for my night patrol."

"Be safe," she whispered.

"Yeah, whatever Katie." He hung up.

She tossed her phone onto the bed and groaned. What had she done now?

* * *

It's been a good four hours since Ned, and she stared at her phone off and on as she stirred the pasta noodles she was cooking for dinner. There had been no contact between, not that she'd expected any.

Hannah startled her, coming into the kitchen and leaning up against the counter in front of her phone. "What's on your mind? You ditched early from the party."

"Some guy brought me home," she said, turning back toward her noodles and then the chicken she had cooking in the other pan. She had yet to start the alfredo sauce yet. "Why?"

"Oh yeah?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah, he stayed for coffee and left." She said.

"You're so boring sometimes," Hannah sighed, but smiled anyway. "But I get it… I know.."

"Do you?" She asked, glancing over at her for a moment she reached to grab the alfredo sauce.

"What happened now?" Hannah asked.

Apparently, she was giving off more in her expressions than she'd thought she was. She shrugged. "I was really drunk last night," she sighed. "And I sort of stalked the hell out Ned and some girl who was hanging out with."

"Who was he hanging out with?" She asked.

"Some hot coworker," she grabbed her phone and pulled up the picture on her facebook app. "Ned said he just needed a beer and to get his mind off work."

"Why is she on top of him?" Hannah scoffed. "Gross."

"So I'm not the only one? Thank you! He just threw back at me that I was flaunting myself at some party, which isn't a lie." She sighed and poured the sauce into the empty saucepan she had ready.

"He shouldn't make you feel bad for having fun and looking hot," Hannah reassured her as she grabbed the hotpads for her to be able to pour out the water from the noodles.

In the end, she knew Hannah just wanted her to be happy. She wanted her to have fun, to live a little more than she usually did.

She knew she shouldn't feel bad for anything, even if Ned's dig had hurt. "I know, but I shouldn't throw all of this on him either. I asked him if he was sleeping with her." She put the hot pads on and brought the pot over to the sink where she'd already had the strainer sitting.

"And?" Hannah asked, intrigued for answers.

"Hannah, do you really think he'd do that?" She sighed, shaking her head as she slowly poured the contents of the pot into the strainer.

"I don't know, do you?" Hannah asked. "I know you two are taking some time away from things. But that shouldn't mean sex with other people, right?"

"That's what I thought," she said. "But I got caught up in everything that I know he used to do and I get scared that I'm just another person on his list."

"I think Ned cares about you and I know you care about him. When you fight with him it's terrible because you both just know how to hurt each other." Hannah rubbed her side. "I'm gonna go check on the chicken. I think you should either text or call him, even if he doesn't answer."

She sighed and ran some cold water over the noodles to cool them a little bit. She glanced over at her phone again. Katie doesn't have the nerve to actually talk to him again, but she took the first step with a text message.

**Katie - March 23rd - 6:42 pm: I'm really sorry.**

Twenty minutes or so passed before she and Hannah had put together dinner and got settled at the table with a bottle of wine. When she hadn't heard back from him, she sent another text while she was up to grab paper towels before they dug in for food.

**Katie - March 23rd - 7:00 pm: I know you would never do that to me. I was just jealous when I saw that picture because I was drunk and lonely. I miss you so much. I don't even know what I was thinking when I said we should take a break. Can we please fix this?**

She wiggled her fingers back and forth over the keyboards before typing out another.

**Katie - March 23rd - 7:02 pm: I love you. I know we can make this work.**

That took forever.

She didn't want to keep compulsively checking her phone, so she left it in the kitchen and joined Hannah for their dinner.

"No answer?" Hannah was pouring the wine, eyeing her as she came toward the table off to the side of the kitchen by the front door.

"No," she said. "I don't think I'm gonna get one. He's working and mad at me. Not a good combo."

Hannah nodded and held up a half-full glass of wine. "Drink up and keep away from your phone."

* * *

After dinner, Katie and Hannah were both sprawled out on the couch watching movies on Netflix. Hannah was absently shoving potato chips into her mouth as she stared at the television.

"This is a fantastic movie. What's it called again?" Hannah asked. "I know it's one of those Nicholas Sparks books."

"I thought so too," she said, reaching over for another handful of chips. "I think it's called The Vow."

A few hours later, Rachel McAdams was crying and so were both of them.

That's when Katie's phone rang.

"Don't get it," Hannah said, wiping at her tears.

"What if it's not him?" She asked, moving to get up.

A few seconds later, she heard Hannah sighed. "Fine. Just don't answer if it's him."

She was in the kitchen a few seconds later, it was an unknown number but she knew the area code was Grandview and picked it up anyway.

"Hello?" She said.

"Katie Clancy?" It's not Ned. Or her mom. Or any voice that she could recognize.

"Yes…" She said softly. "Who is this?"

Hannah has paused the movie and came over to get a different snack, rolling up the bag of chips.

"I have here that you're listed as one of the emergency contacts for Ned Banks." The voice said on the other end. "Something happened on his patrol tonight during a pullover."

Katie almost dropped the phone. "What happened? Is Ned okay?"

The woman on the other end paused for a long moment. "I can't tell you much over the phone besides that he's in critical condition, Ms. Clancy. I'm going to need you to come to Mercy General Hospital as soon as you can. I have some paperwork that needs to be filled out. We haven't been able to get ahold of his mother yet."

"Oh - Okay." Katie paced back and forth and Hannah was trying to silently comfort her while she listened to the call.

"Why don't you just get here and we can sort the rest out then," the woman said kindly and then hung up.

Katie nearly collapsed into Hannah's arms for a few moments before she collected herself.

"Why does this keep happening?" She asked.

"What you gonna do? Are you really gonna drive to Grandview right now?" Hannah was tryin to calm her down. She had her hands on her shoulders and was maintaining eye contact. "Breathe, Katie. You need to think."

"I have to go, Han." She ran her hands up against her face nervously. "Will you drive? I don't think I can."

Hannah bit her lip. "Yeah, I'll drive. Just give me like a half an hour."

She nodded and sighed, grabbing her phone and going over to the couch. Katie immediately called her dad.

Jim answered on the third ring, whispering. "Katie, I'm at a play with your mom, what's up?"

"Ned's in the hospital," Katie blurted out. Her dad was very quiet, but she heard shuffling as he moved. "I'm still his emergency contact. I need you to go and check on him for me before Hannah and I leave."

Her dad surprised her. "I just snuck out of the theatre and told your mom to follow at the end of the song which shouldn't be long. We'll come to pick you both up. We're in the city with those Broadway tickets from Grandma, don't you remember? "

"Oh, yeah. Everything these past few days have been a lot. I didn't even remember," Katie sighed. "That would be great. "I'm sorry for ruining your night."

"Don't worry. I'm pretty sure your mom was distracted by something else," her dad laughed. "I think there was a ghost in the lobby."

"Like usual," she said. "I'll see you soon. Thanks, dad."

He's there in thirty minutes, and Katie and Hannah were ready. Both of their bags packed and the apartment locked as the elevator door opened and her dad came through in his penguin suit.

"Mom made you dress up, huh?" She smiled and hugged him.

"Of course, and she looks so fine." He chuckled, kissing her forehead. "You doing okay? I called the hospital?"

"And?" She asked, pulling back to look up at him.

"No change. He's still unconscious and in critical condition." He explained. "I'll get a chance to take a closer look when we get there Katie, I promise." He reassured her.

"I'm kind of happy you were here dad." She sighed, wrapping her arms around him again. "I don't think I trusted Hannah with my car."

"Hey!" Hannah elbowed her and they all laughed.

"C'mon, your moms waiting in the car." He said, grabbing each of their bags as they walked toward the elevator. Once they were in the car, they all buckled up and Katie slumped into the back seat.

"You okay?" her mom asked after her dad got in the front and pulled back into the road.

"I don't know," she whispered. "No. I'm not." She heard her voice shake, and knows she's close to tears again.

"Oh, honey. We'll be home soon." Her mom held out her hand and she grabbed hold as she laid her head on Hannah's shoulder.


	20. Chapter 20

Katie didn't cry when her dad told her that Ned was stabbed in the stomach and doesn't cry when her dad said Ned being alive was nothing short of a miracle. She didn't even cry when she saw a glimpse of Ned, pale and surrounded by doctors and nurses. She was somehow clear-headed when she called Delia and told her what happened and got her hands to stop shaking for when she filled out Ned's paperwork. She didn't choke up when the nurse asked her what Ned might want them to do if he doesn't wake up.

Katie didn't cry until her dad led her into the ICU room so she could see him. There were several IVs hanging next to Ned, feeding into his arm, and a tube coming from his mouth. The sight was enough to knock the wind right from her lungs and make her heartache. Grabbing the nearest chair, she pulled it up to his bed and sat down.

"Oh, dear God… what happened to you?" Katie whispered, tears welling in her eyes. She couldn't bear to look up at his face any longer and pressed her lips to his open palm. She wished he could squeeze her hand, anything. "Ned, I love you so much. You can't leave me."

She fell asleep with his hand in both of hers, and her head on his thigh. It must've been the morning when she woke because her mom and smiled sympathetically as she held out a coffee cup.

"I think it would be good to stretch your legs," Melinda's words were soft, but she only sat up enough to take the cup. "Did you sleep here?"

"I don't know what time it even is," she winced and rubbed her neck. She looked back over at Ned. "I didn't want to leave him."

"Well, it's around seven in the morning so you must've fallen asleep like that," Melinda leaned down to kiss her cheek. "I'll have your dad bring a cot in here if you want. Sleeping like that is hell on your back."

Katie smiled but can't bring herself to answer. That was a definite yes. Her back hurt like hell and so did her neck.

Her mom just kept smiling and rubbed her hand over her shoulder. "I'll have it brought in."

"Thanks, mom," she croaked, then cleared her throat. "Mom, wait."

Melinda came back over to her. "Yes, Katie?"

"Thank you for coming by and for leaving the play and coming to get me." She laughed a little, the sound forced even to her. She was just trying to feel a little happy, but it wasn't helping. "It meant a lot."

"Oh, honey." Melinda kneeled just slightly and touched her cheek. "Do you want me to stay a little bit? I think it would be good if you got a bite to eat and stretched your legs."

She nodded and reluctantly stood up. She leaned over and pressed a kiss to Ned's forehead and sighed as she walked away, looping her arm around her mom's waist.

She didn't know if she could be happy, but it's easier with her mom around, Melinda helped distract her. Between talking about the store, outrageous stories about her siblings, or her plans for her dad's upcoming birthday, it was comforting.

When Melinda eventually left to bring her siblings to school, she suddenly felt empty. She walked back to Ned's room, leaning against the doorway. She waited, watching him breathe for a moment before she walked toward him. She slowly took his hands in hers and tried really hard not to cry again. Ned always hated to see her cry, especially when it was his fault. While she wouldn't necessarily categorize this as his fault, but more as she was crying over him and over her own stupidity.

"Don't leave me," she whispered, resting her forehead on his hand. She kissed his sickly cold skin. "I'm so sorry that I said those things to you. I love you."

A hand on her back startled her, and she turned her head to see her dad behind her.

"Hey, Katie." He whispered, pulling in a small cot through the doorway. "I thought I'd give you an update and your mom said you'd need a cot."

"Thanks, dad. What's the news?" She asked, glancing back at Ned.

"In addition to having multiple fractured ribs and the stab wound, Ned was given an MRI last night and it showed there was swelling in his brain that indicates an injury either from a fall due to the stabbing or a blow to the head afterward," her dad explained, rubbing his hand up and down her back. "I know that's a lot to take in, but we don't know how extensive this swelling is just yet so we've put him in a medically induced coma to try and keep it to a minimum. That's why he hasn't woke up yet."

Katie didn't want to hear any more. The words flew in her ears and around her head and stuck there, echoing over and over again even after her dad exited the room with Ned for another MRI to see if anything changed.

About a half an hour later, Ned returned and later that night the results from the second MRI showed that the swelling had not gotten worse.

Thank god.

Her dad came back to her with a plan. It sounded simple enough.

For the time being, Ned would stay in the medically-induced coma and through a series of MRIs in the coming days, the medical team would then decide when they could attempt to wake him up.

Of course, it wasn't that simple. Ned still wasn't out of the woods, and nobody would know his long-term prognosis until he woke up. Or, as her dad put it, if Ned woke up.

Katie didn't understand it. If the swelling hadn't gotten worse, wasn't that good news? Why was everything still so unclear?

But the one thing that stayed present in her mind was this: would she ever get to talk to Ned again?

* * *

**The days turned into one week, and then two weeks.**

Katie had emailed her professors and started to doing coursework online, never leaving Ned longer than it took for her to take run to her parent's house to eat, shower, and put on fresh clothes.

She barely slept, even in the cot that stayed pulled up next to Ned's bed. Every now and then she'd let herself sleep for an hour or two, her hand resting on the edge of the bed, clasped tightly around his. And then she'd let herself sleep a little more on one of the couches in the waiting room every time the medical team would take him down for another MRI.

It was hard enough sleep to ward off the dark circles that had grown more and more pronounced with each passing day. With her midterms rescheduled, Katie's only focus was Ned.

Not school, not sleep, just him. She wouldn't let anything take priority, not after how cruel she'd been to him before.

The nurses said he probably couldn't hear her, but if she wanted, she could talk to him. Her mom told her not to give up, and she didn't.

Neither Melinda or any of the Clancy kids had seen his spirit around, which hurt her, but also gave her a feeling of hope. She'd almost hoped he'd haunt her if he could. He would have so gotten a kick out of that.

Would he have? Did she even know him anymore?

She sang to him at night when the halls had grown quiet for another day, and she talked to him every moment in between. She told him what her plans were for the day, which usually just consisted of her making several trips down to the cafeteria for another dry turkey sandwich, plain side salad and a cup of her favorite juice, but it was something to tell him.

She encouraged everyone else to do the same. Delia, her mom, dad, and siblings all came to see him whenever they could. It made her happy.

It wasn't near the happiness Katie felt when her dad came in and told her they were going to planning to attempt waking Ned up on the ninth of April, to say the least. Ned had progressed far enough to take the next step, but her dad reminded her that they still didn't know if he would even wake up.

There was a lot more to be afraid of than be happy about.

"Look at that sunset," Katie whispered that evening when the sun had sunk low in the sky, casting an orange glow over the low lit room. "It looks like your sheets are orange, like those ones you always wanted when you were a kid but your mother would never let you have."

She squeezed his hand and thought about what it might be like if he never woke up. There was so much between them left unsaid, so much she wanted to apologize for and if she'd only known that they would be here she never would have left them unsaid. A life with Ned wasn't nearly as terrifying as life without him.

"I know I keep saying it, but I'm sorry." Katie cried, letting a tear slide down her cheek as she squeezed his hand. "I was so jealous of Jasmine because she got to hang out with you, even though the reason we weren't together was my fault. I'm the one who asked for a break because I was angry with you. I jumped the gun and I'm sorry. I just hope I get to tell you this tomorrow."

Pressing a kiss to his hand, she rested her head on the bed and tried to sleep.

* * *

It was sometime the next morning when her dad came in, a big smile on his face.

"What are you smiling about," she muttered, rubbing her eyes as she moved to sit up on the cot she was sleeping on.

"Fabulous news," he said, sitting down beside her as she turned on the bed for her legs to hang over. "We're going to help ease Ned out of his coma today."

Her heart stopped and she turned to look over at her father. Was this true? "Really?" She asked.

He nodded. "It should take about ten minutes for him to start waking up," her dad explained. "A word of caution though, don't be alarmed if he's confused and disoriented. He may not remember you at first and he's still intubated, so he won't be able to talk. Give it time."

"Aren't you staying?" She asked.

"I wish I could," her dad squeezed her hand. "But I have a surgery to get to." With that, Jim exited the room and the nurse on duty began to stop the flow of medicine that was keeping him asleep.

Every minute ticked by felt like it was an hour long. Ten minutes, her dad said. Ten minutes and Ned should wake up. What if he didn't? What if they waited ten, twenty minutes and he didn't wake up? What would they do then?

Eight and a half minutes passed before Ned's eyes began to flutter and open. Katie jumped from her chair, making sure she was the first person Ned as she sat on the edge of his bed before grabbing his face and kissing him everywhere her lips could reach without interfering with the intubation tube.

Ned's eyes took in his surroundings, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. He pointed at the tube coming from his mouth and shook his head.

"You can't talk until they take that out," she said, smoothing his hair back. "I'll go get Sarah." She said, sprinting from the room.

It didn't take long for the nurse to remove the breathing tube. But Ned was asked to refrain from speaking for at least an hour and given ice chips to soothe any throat pain.

"Us nurses are going to grab some lunch downstairs, Katie, do you want to come?" The nurse asked on her way out.

Katie shook her head, moving in closer to Ned's bed and grabbing his hand. She wasn't going anywhere. Not right now. Once the nurse had left the room, he squeezed her hand to get her attention and pointed.

"What do you want?" Katie asked. "Your ice chips?"

With his nod, she spooned a few ice chips into his mouth. She watched his face relax as he let them melt on his tongue and the cool water soothed his throat.

"Katie?" he croaked.

"She nurse said no talking for an hour," she reminded him softly, rubbing his forearm, being careful of the IV and wires.

She tried to be stern with him so he wouldn't talk, but all she wanted to do was smile and encourage him to keep going. She could hear his voice again. God, she'd missed his voice, and her name was the first word he'd said after all this time.

How could she tell him to stop talking now?

She felt more tears escape from her eye

"Don't cry, Katie." Ned's voice was raspy, and Katie almost thought this was all in her head. It was such a dream. He was awake. "You know I hate it when you cry."

She started crying even harder then, her hands fluttering over him, unsure where she should touch if she should touch. "Sorry," she said, flustered and wiping her tears away.

Ned caught one and pressed it to his lips weakly. "Hey," he gulped, groaning a little as he moved to look over at her again. "There's something I need to tell you. I just remembered."

"You should take it easy, Ned," she squeezed his hand and sighed.

"I was gonna call you after my shift and tell you that I forgave you," he said softly. "I know you were just a little jealous. Herns is a little touchy when she has alcohol in her, but it's all play. I swear."

"You swear?" She asked.

"Yeah, just ask her girlfriend." He said, cocking his eyebrow at her a little.

"Oh," she laughed, rolling her eyes at his smugness. "How do you feel?"

Ned actually looked happier than she'd seen him in a long time, despite the bruises and bandages wrapped around his ribs and stomach. He smiled at her. "Much better. I'm glad you were here when I woke up."

"I'm not going anywhere, Ned," she leaned up and kissed him. "I was here the whole time."

"The whole time?" He asked, pulling back just slightly.

"Where else would I rather be?" She asked, leaning in to kiss him once more.


	21. Chapter 21

A week later, Ned was still in the hospital but on his feet walking back from the bathroom and Katie was working on an essay on her computer when she asked, "What were you doing? When you got stabbed?"

She moved to stand, but he waved off her hand when she offered to help him across the room. "I was on patrol alone, Jamison was out sick and LeTrai didn't make me take a rookie for once. I was on a routine stop when I overheard a commotion in the alleyway." He stopped halfway, o take a breather and she was already moving toward him. "I should've called for backup right then, but I saw someone was trying to yank a purse off some girl and I just ran up on the street out of instinct. The guy plunged his knife right in my stomach, no hesitation. He shoved me off and knocked me around for good measure."

Katie ducked under his arm to support him back to the bed. "That sounds terrible. I'm so sorry that happened to you, Ned."

"If that girl hadn't stuck around... I would probably be dead." He sighed. "I don't even know if I saved her purse."

"I'm just glad she stuck around and you're alive. Even if it means you're stuck in here for a while." She sighed, smiling at him.

"Not much longer," he grinned down at her. "Your dad said I could probably go home at the end of the week. There are a lot of Netflix marathons and sponge baths in my future, but anything is better than more stupid Jello."

Katie giggled. "And who's going to help you hobble around when you need to use the bathroom once I go back to the city?" She helped him settle back into the bed.

Ned shrugged and looked away. "I'll manage. My mom will probably come over."

She carefully ran her fingers through the tufts of hair sticking up over his forehead. "You know, I could just continue online and help, you know," she said quietly.

Ned played with the sheet, still not meeting her gaze. She knew he wanted to say yes, but he wasn't going to. "You have to go back to the city. I don't want to take you away from that."

This time, Katie slid a hand over his cheek and turned his head. "I can still finish out the year online and send in anything I need to turn-in in person to Olivia or Hannah until you're better. I think my professors understand. I'm staying with you." She paused and pulled back. "Unless you don't want me to."

Ned grabbed her hand quickly and pressed it between both of his. "Of course I do." He hesitated.

"But?" She asked.

"A month ago, you said we might not work. Nothing's really changed since then." He sighed, itching his neck. "I'm still a mess."

"But it has," she said, heart picking up speed. "Everything has changed Ned. Even after everything that just happened, I feel like my bond with you is even stronger, don't you?"

Ned sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "I know I still have things to work through, but what if everyone hates me?"

"My parents drove me here from the city. They completely left their date when the hospital called me." She explained. "How could anyone hate you? It was just… stupid long-distance jealousy and drama."

Ned looked down at her hand, tracing the lines on her palm. "I know and I'm so happy that we're working on things together, but am I worth abandoning school?"

"Ned, I didn't abandon school." She explained. "I've been keeping up online. I still kept my grades up. I thought you were going to die and now you need some help getting around. Why can't I help you?"

Ned smiled sadly at her. "I'm not going to fight with you, Katie. I think you know what I meant by abandoning school, but I'll always respect whatever decision you make. If you want to stay, I'd love it if you did, but I'm not asking you too."

Katie sighed and tightened her hand around his. "I know. I just wish everything wasn't so hard."

"I just want you to know that I'm never going to disappear on you again, Katie," he whispered. "I promise. We just need to take everything slow. I think it's for the best. We messed with things the last time we..."

"I know… you're right." She chewed on her lip and then looked up at him. "Are you saying you don't want to be with me?"

"I'm always going to want to be with you, but you know we have a long way to go before things are anywhere close to where we were before I screwed everything up."

"It wasn't just you that screwed everything up," Katie pressed her mouth into a thin line and stared out the window while she blinked the tears from her eyes. Slowly she extracted her hand from his and took a peek back over at him. "I'm still staying with you until you feel better," she said firmly. "I can sleep on the couch."

Ned dropped his head back onto the pillow and stared at her for a long time with a soft look in his eyes before he finally said, "Okay."

* * *

It's unnerving, how natural it felt for Katie to be staying with Ned, even if she was sleeping on the couch and he couldn't walk farther than a few steps without needing her help.

It was going well so far. Katie had verbally caught him up on a show she was binge-watching and slept through his sports games, and they caught up on the TV shows they used to watch together. It's jarring at the same time for Katie to be this close to him but feel so far emotionally. It almost felt too close for comfort.

She told her mom all of this when she went over to her mom's house to do a quick load of laundry. Melinda had given her some advice, mostly to follow her gut and take things slow. Even if she didn't always want to do that.

By the end of the first week, they'd migrated to watch movies. Ned decided he's tired of the canned soup and delivery food they'd been living off of sent Katie to the store with a list. When she got back, he had water boiling and onions and garlic in oil on a pan.

The entire apartment smelt like the best thing she'd smelt in a long time. Katie had forgotten how good Ned's cooking was.

They sat at the table for dinner for the first time since that day she saw Alyssa's ghost and all the problems got worse. It's uncomfortably close to the life Katie used to imagine she'd have with him in the future. Living in Grandview together, happily ever after.

She managed to smile and keep the talk casual through dinner and stayed calm when Ned sat a little too close to her on the couch when they watched a horror movie afterward.

"You good?" He asked, rubbing her arm. "This is a little scarier than I thought it would be."

It wasn't the movie that scared her. It was her instinct to want to kiss him, to just stop paying attention to this stupid movie.

"I'm good," she said, shrugging. "I've seen worse in some of my visions, trust me."

She knew it would be best if she should take it slow. It was the right option.

"I don't doubt that," he turned away, but his hand moved to rest on her thigh, his fingers extending to rest over her knee.

In response, she leaned in and rested her head on his shoulder. That seemed like enough.

* * *

She's in the kitchen, making eggs and toast for a late Saturday breakfast while Ned slowly got dressed.

"Katie?" His voice called out.

"Yeah?" She called back.

She knew his voice was so loud because he left his door open; it made her shiver a little as she whipped the eggs a little too violently.

"Can we go somewhere today?" His voice was as close to whining as she'd ever heard it.

"What? Tired of me already?" She teased.

She imagined him rolling his eyes at her. "I'm tired of my apartment, how could I ever be tired of you?" He called back. "How about the square? Or Village Java? Or anywhere other than here?" He appeared in the hallway, leaning up against the wall.

Katie eyed his jeans and t-shirt, sliding the food onto plates. She handed one to him. "Are you sure you're up to that much walking?"

"I'm starting physical therapy on Monday. I want to be ready." He sat at the table and pat the spot next to him.

"Okay," she relented and sat beside him, smiling lightly. "The square it is."

"Thank you," he breathed a little lighter and squeezed her hand before digging in.

Ned tired quickly, as Katie knew he would. They managed a lap around the square before she suggested they sit. SHe almost wanted to hold his hand, but they were a comfortable distance apart. Should she take that leap? She doesn't do anything, though, and Ned tilted his head up to look up at the clouds.

It almost felt like old times.

"I'm really glad you stayed to help me out," he said, glancing over at her then. "I don't think it would've been as much fun spending all this time with my mom." He laid his hand over hers. "I've really appreciated everything you've done for me these past few weeks."

"Of course I would stay, Ned. I care about you," she smiled softly, squeezing his hand. "Don't worry."

"That's not what I'm worried about," he whispered. "I really want this to work. I don't want to lose you."

Not like old times.

"This is going to work," she reassured him. "We're just taking it slow."

Katie doesn't remember exactly what he said after that. She just remembered that there was definitely a smile on his face. They walked back to his apartment hand-in-hand and she couldn't remember the last time they'd held hands in public.

When they got inside, Ned suggested they watched a movie in the bedroom because he was too sore to try and get comfortable on that couch.

She didn't know if she trusted herself alone with him in his bedroom. She sighed, "I don't know," she said.

"You've got to be sick of the couch by now. I've got plenty of room," he smiled, grabbing hold of her hand and slowly pulling her toward the room.

She reluctantly laid with him, but hardly paid any attention to the movie. It was just too hard to concentrate when she was laying this close to him. And when Ned asked what's wrong, she let him hold her. He cradled her, his arms snugly wrapped around her waist.

"I like this," he whispered, glancing back over at her. "Do you feel better?"

"Much better," she said, turning slightly to face him. "I've missed this, and I think this is a good next step, don't you?"

"Yes, I do." He agreed.

She tucked her face into his chest and that was the last thing she remembered.

* * *

Katie woke up in the morning with a slight stiffness in her neck and a body slightly under her. Her heart warmed when she realized the weight was Ned and they'd fallen asleep together in his bed. She took too long to decide what to do, and Ned half-woke up and pulled her closer, pressing his lips to her forehead and burying his face in the crook of her neck.

She meant to pull away, to keep things at a slow crawl, but her limbs betray her. She melted into him. This was what she'd missed most. The little things like feeling him next to her in the morning when she woke up were just too good to take for granted.

His lips slightly stirred against her skin, pressing a light kiss to her neck. "Good morning, are you up?" He rested a warm hand on her arm.

He was too close. This was too good. She attempted to keep the air moving through her lungs, but it became harder the more her body started to melt into his from how close he was.

"Babe," he whispered, right behind her ear. "Stop freaking out." He's slightly laughing now.

Katie closed her eyes, frozen in place. Ned's hands drifted around her waist and up her back as he pulled back to look at her. Suddenly the whole situation was very familiar. Except there's the looming question of how they could possibly make it work. And, of course, they were hardly wearing any clothes.

"It's not like you haven't seen me without a shirt before," he joked, though he knew that's not why she's hyperventilating. And although he's doing a pretty good job of hiding it, he was nervous too.

"You said we should try to take it slow." She reminded him, looking over at him pointedly. "This is not helping me want to take it slow."

"I know," he said, pulling away slightly.

"My mom agreed too," she sighed, rolling away slightly.

Her back hit the cold side of the bed without her even realizing she'd been moving that far. Ned slowly moved toward her and pressed lips to hers for a long moment, his hands grasping her face momentarily, before moving back.

"I think for us... this is pretty slow," he chuckled and held her face in his hands.

"Yeah," she said, leaning back in once more for another kiss. She could have that much. It wasn't anything like a movie-type one with the fireworks that surrounded them, but one steeped in a passion that ignites. It was the promise of realness, of the primal desire that lived in them both. When their lips parted, he gently moved out of bed. "I guess this is slow, for us."

He closed the bathroom door behind him and she banged her forehead against her pillow. Slow was the last thing she wanted after that kiss.

* * *

Katie went back to the city the same day Ned went back to work. It felt good to be going to class, even though she'd still gotten an A. It was nice to stop for coffee and she bumped into Olivia, who she walked to class with. But she still felt empty, like something's missing. She'd never outright admit that it's Ned that she's missing. The time she spent with him felt dream-like now, and she managed to wait until lunch before calling him.

"How was your first day back going?" SHe asked, opening her salad box and started to put her dressing on top.

"Lots of paperwork so far," Ned sounded grumpy. "Protocol."

She laughed. Ned hated when he had to do paperwork or be on desk duty. "Your stomach's not hurting too much, right?" She asked, her worrying tone catching on quick. "You have your meds with you?"

"I feel fine and yes, I have them with me just in case." He said, his voice calming her. "It's quiet here at the apartment without you, though. I also didn't have you to remind me to grab my lunch this morning and forgot it, so I had to run back."

"Of course you did," she tossed her croutons on top and laughed. "I'm glad everything is going well though. I'm kind of happy you're doing paperwork if that isn't terrible of me to stay."

"No, I understand. I still have to pass my eval with the shrink, so I'll probably go to Eli and get it over with so I can get back out there." He said, and she could almost she see him smile. "Are you coming back to Grandview anytime soon?"

"My dad's birthday is coming up. I'll be home like next weekend." She said, finding her fork and taking a bite of her salad. "Movie night? It's your turn to pick."

"I already got a few in mind," he chuckled. "How's school?"

"Good. My first three classes were pretty blah, but my novel writing class is after lunch and I'm looking forward to it." She said happily, taking another eager bite of her salad.

"I hope you have a good afternoon, Katie." He said. "I have to go. I'll talk to you later."

"Sounds like a plan. Be safe, Ned." She said softly.

"I always try, I love you." He replied happily.

"I love you too," she said.

Katie hung up, smiling brightly and thought about him all afternoon. Maybe they were gonna be okay.


	22. Chapter 22

That next weekend was her father's forty-ninth birthday and as usual, everyone was going to celebrate.

Usually, her Grandma Faith would come to town, but she was out of the country living her best-retired life, so this year her mother planned to have a lowkey night in at the family home and cook up a storm of his favorite foods.

Tonight's menu consisted of his favorite plain cheese pizza, the creamiest and cheesiest macaroni and cheese in the history of the world, and apparently a giant…garden salad?

"You made dad a salad, and it's not a desert one?" Katie asked, bringing the bowl out and handing it to her mom. She held a glass of wine in the other hand and beer was tucked under her arm for Ned. "Weird."

"What's that?" Her dad asked, horrified when Melinda set the bowl of greens on the table.

"You're starting to get a little pudgy, babe. A salad would do you good." Her mother pressed a kiss to his cheek as she walked away.

Jim's mouth drops open in shock, affording everyone a disgusting view of his half-chewed mac and cheese. Then he grunted and went back to shoveling food in his mouth, and that's the end of that discussion.

Katie took her seat next to Ned, who was being uncharacteristically quiet, but she tried to think it was just because he was shoveling down food like her dad was. When she set down his beer next to him, he smiled and winked at her, and she thought that had to be a good sign.

With the weather warming up now that it's April and summer looming ahead, Mackenzie and Aaron ate quickly and then rushed back outside. Aaron was practicing his shots to make the summer basketball league and Mackenzie wanted to play with her neighbor friends. Delia had been invited to the dinner, too, but declined because of plans she couldn't get out of. So now it's just Jim, Melinda, Katie, and Ned sitting around the old dining room table besides Lana (who was still too young to talk more than a handful of words), and she already knew what's next.

"So Katie, we got your midterm report card and you got straight A's this semester! I was a little worried after you took so much time off to help Ned after his accident, but I'm so happy everything worked out." Her mom's cutting the chocolate cake and handed a plate to her with a nice sized slice. "What about you, Ned? How are things doing now that you're back to work?"

"Things are good," Ned offered with a polite smile. "There's not really much to report right now. I'm still on desk duty."

Katie thought it's nice that her mom always wanted to acknowledge their accomplishments, but this wasn't really a discussion she felt like having now. When everyone had their slice of chocolate cake and her mom looked over at her again, she dreaded any further talk about herself or her plans to possibly come home or move in with Ned.

"I heard that Aaron got a 27 on the ACT," she said, intercepting the conversation before any more questions were asked of her.

Besides, Aaron deserved the spotlight for a moment anyway, even if he wasn't at the table. He certainly never got enough recognition compared to anyone else. "That's in the 85th percentile. Not many people get higher than 20." She totally looked that up as soon as her brother told her his score, and she really was proud of him. She'd gotten a 34, which was really hard to do, but she'd studied for the entire year for that exam.

Both her parents were nodding and grinning. Her dad had pushed back his empty plate and said, "That was definitely awesome. He was so dreading that exam, but I told him just to think everything through because he isn't stupid."

"Didn't you get like a super high number?" Ned nudged her side and she shrugged.

"Yeah, a 34." She told them. "But it's nothing. It's actually embarrassing how much I studied for it. I hardly did anything social junior year because of it."

"The highest you can get is like, what, 36? That's amazing, I got a 23." Ned said, sounding a little more entertained and that made her feel better too.

"I'm embarrassed to say I got a 26," her dad chuckled. "But I didn't study for anything in high school besides sports and girls."

"I got a 32," her mom shrugged and then high-fived Katie from across the table, who was snickering now.

"Okay, to be honest, I'm super proud of my test scores. I was the highest in school." She said, a little smug. "I think I got in the newspaper with like the ten other kids who got over 30. But enough of me, tonight is about dad and how close he is to being an old man. You're fifty next year, daddy, can you believe it?" She had scooted closer to him and wrapped her arms around him.

"Ugh, don't remind me." Her father sighed and then pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Thanks anyway, bug."

"Happy birthday, my love." Melinda slid in a piece of cake for him that had a heaping side of ice frame and pressed an eager kiss to his lips.

"To Jim!" Ned rose his beer and she clinked her wine glass against it with a cheer to her dad.

"To Jim!" Her mom said as she sat back down, clicking her glass with each of theirs their happily before leaning over to kiss her dad again.

"Thanks," I couldn't feel older." Her dad said, tipping back his beer.

* * *

Later, when Katie and Ned both stood to clear the table, her mom tried to shoo them away as she always did. But her dad intercepted this time, and she would never forget the look he gave her mother when he led her away, insisting that they sneak off and upstairs (because it was his birthday after all).

"I wash, you rinse and dry?" Ned offered.

Katie nodded her agreement and stood next to him at the sink. They worked together in a comfortable silence for a while, but then she just couldn't take it anymore. She had to say something about his odd behavior earlier. She was too worried about him.

"It really is great that you came tonight. I didn't know if you'd have it off." She wanted to tell him that she was worried about him, that he was bottling things up again, but she's pretty sure that she might cross a line and didn't want to ruin the good times they'd been having.

"Yeah, me either but I switched days with someone. Your dad's birthday is important." He said softly. Then he looked over at her and offered the most genuine smile she'd seen on him all night. "I'm happy I got to see you, too. Are you headed back tonight?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "Maybe."

"If you're staying, you can always stay with me," he suggested.

She fell quiet, taking a plate from him and rising it quickly before setting it on the drying rack.

"You don't have to sleep on the couch this time," he added. "That is, if you don't want too."

"Sure. Sounds like fun," she said, smiling softly at him.

He nodded as he handed her another dish and then resubmerged his hands in the soapy water. He was trying to look busy like he's intently concentrating on the task, but she knew everything that's happened between them the last few weeks was definitely weighing heavily on him.

They're quiet for a while, and when the last pan was dried, he gripped the edge of the countertop. "I think we both need to work on some things, but I'm really happy we aren't on a break. We don't need to be like Ross and Rachel."

She snorted and nodded her agreement. He could be so funny, even in the tense moments. "Yeah, we both are works in progress." She nodded as she grabbed a towel to dry her hands off and gave it to him after. "But I'm glad we're together."

They walked into the living room together, and he stood awkwardly at the front door. "I should get going. Are you staying over?"

"Yeah, a night in with you sounds nice. I'm just gonna go say goodbye and then I'll be on my way," she said, leaning close to hug him quickly.

"Okay, well, say happy birthday to your dad for me one more time. I'm definitely not going up there," he chuckled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "See you later." He gave her a small smile and wave goodbye as he headed out.

"You okay?" Her dad came down the stairs a few moments after Ned left. "Everything good between you two?"

"Yeah, as good as we could be right now." She managed an okay enough answer for him, thankful for the concern but really not ready to talk about anything yet. Especially not to her dad.

Jim's usually so good about not pushing her, so she froze up when he draped his arm around her and whispered, "Katiebug, tell me the truth." He took a deep breath. "Is your mom right? Am I getting fat?"

She laughed out loud and clapped her hand against his stomach before she walked past him and up the stairs. "I think you know the answer to that question, dad."

"And what might that be?" her dad asked, his brows knitted together and he held his stomach in his hands protectively.

"You have a dad bod, dad. Just accept it or get back in the gym with Ned, mom is gonna love you no matter what." She said.

* * *

When Ned got home, he made sure to clean up the littering cups and trash around his apartment before Katie got there. He'd even gone as far as making his bed and wiping down surfaces before she knocked on the door.

He opened the door and she smiled at him, walking inside and slipping her coat off.

"I'm never going to stop missing driving around this town. I love Grandview," she said, hanging up her coat. "It's so much easier than driving around the city."

"Yeah, I bet." He said, closing the door. "So Katie…I was thinking we get that movie night started like you suggested before on the phone."

She nodded. "What movie are you thinking? Do you have popcorn?"

He paused and walked toward his kitchen. "Not sure," he said, checking his cupboards. He pulled out a pack, the last one. "One left."

"It's fate," she winked.

He was flustered at that. He wanted so badly to be in a better place with her. He still felt awkward, like he didn't have that right to just outwardly touch her if he wanted. And now the moment was here, should he take his shot?

Their relationship had always been dependent on her making the first real move. Sometimes he'd open the door, but she was always the one to make that leap into the dark and pull him along with.

He would wait forever for her if he had to, but he didn't know if he had it him it hold himself back anyway. The way she was looking at him, tired and full of hope, said that she wanted him to do it.

Just this once.

He finally spits it out. "I have to say something," he said softly. She looked at him like she always looked at him when he started to say something like this. He ignored it and plowed on. "We're... dating and I'm so happy that we're together." He closed his eyes, trying not to think about what he desperately wanted because his body will betray him. He might as well just get straight to the point. "But I'm sick of waiting… I want more." He sighed. "I want us to be like we were."

"I know, and I agree. I miss us," she said, and then she paused. "What exactly are you thinking?"

"I don't know," he shrugged.

The crossroads was here. The door was open. Either he waited for her or he leaped, and one thing he knew was that he didn't want to wait any longer. It was his turn to make the first move. For no other reason than that he wanted to give her everything that she was to him.

She was taking the popcorn to the microwave, bent over just slightly to press the buttons and the start button. He took the time to enjoy the image of her, bent over for him and almost wanted to cup her ass. God, he'd always enjoyed her ass.

He took the leap. He walked over to her, just as she turned around with the popcorn in her hand, a big smile. That was almost as intoxication as anything he was thinking about wanting to do to her.

"It's ready," she said, setting the bag on the kitchen counter.

"Good," he smiled and pulled her to him. The smell of her was almost intoxicating. He touched her cheek with his fingertips and then tipped her chin up. "I've missed being with you like this, even to just look at you," he smiled when her brow wrinkled. "I see who you are, Katie." He ran his fingers so so lightly over the skin on her neck. He kissed the skin lightly, every mark of his lips an apology he'll never be able to voice for how badly he felt for hurting her when he'd ran away to drink. "I want a life with you. I see are future so clearly. Good, bad, everything. I'm not watching you from afar, you're not on a pedestal, and you're not in danger. You're here, you're real, and you're with me. I love you."

Tears were streaming down her face, and she's not even trying to hide them anymore. "I love you so much, Ned," she said back, and smiled widely.

He wiped the tears from her cheek with the back of his hand as best he can and waited for a second, and then he doesn't wait anymore. They have all the time in the world to say things to each other, but right now his lips were on hers and he was parting them, telling her everything that there were no words to say.

She gave everything she had back to him, wrapping her arms around him like a vise. She was his. He was breathless, amazed, his heart felt like it might burst with the sudden and sweet joy of her in his arms, kissing him deep and hard like she meant it again. He knew he meant it and knew she did too.

The weightlessness of that realization made his head spin and he wrapped his arms around her so tightly she squawked a little and smiled into his lips before diving in further. He felt the hunger he's always had for her, but this was so much more. Her sureness and complete lack of hesitation lifted everything.

Their need was one need. Every touch fed it and at the same time demanded more. She was Katie, alive and blazing in his arms. He tended to her heat with his steadiness. Contained it, held it. Kept it safe, let it grow and thrived. They melt into one another, every touch stoked the fire.

He could feel the feverish wet flame between her legs and his body responded with hardness like a stone. Her hand twisted in the hair the top of his neck, giving her the leverage to take what she needed from him with her tongue and her lips. His knees threatened to buckle, and he reached for the counter for support. She understood and unwrapped herself slightly from him, ghosting her lips with her fingertips as she felt the loss of his touch, with her other hand taking his and pulling him toward his bedroom.

It was her turn now.


	23. Chapter 23

Katie and Ned stumbled into his bedroom, shedding clothing and inhibition and doubt between feverish kisses and breathless exclamations. She unbuttoned and discarded his shirt before they plopped down on the bed together.

Katie rolled on top of Ned as their lips connected and his hands held her tight against him. Her lips moved down his chest and her teeth nipped at his stomach and ribs, she left a track of tiny kisses down to the waistband of his pants. Her eyes were closed as she felt him out with her hand, palming him.

He groaned eagerly, and she was biting her lip in anticipation as her fingers worked the belt in his pants impatiently. She laughed, delighted with accomplishment as he sprung free. She stared for a moment, her eyes wide. Hungry.

He was gratified, no one had ever looked at him before like this, straight on, so close. She raised those brown eyes to meet his, licked her lips and took the tip of him into her mouth just a little, wrapping her wet lips around him, sucking gently. She's not even using her tongue and it's a ridiculously delicious sensation.

He's not able to handle too much yet, his brain wanted to explode and his hips wanted to buck. It felt so good. He grasped her hair lightly as she slowly took him into her mouth as far as he'll go until pulled back.

Her eyes were still on his face as she sucked lightly and pulled her head up, tugging gently on his skin, running her tongue along the underside, lingering and circling around. The friction was perfect, her pace was perfect, and her eyes were making him want to explode right there in her mouth.

That thought sucked a rush of blood from his brain, rendering him completely speechless. He's thinking about nothing, which wasn't working. He's close to coming and he doesn't want to yet. He still wanted to make her feel like this. He ran his hand through her hair, gently, and then ran it down the side of her jaw, pulling up.

She seemed to understand and let him slip out of her mouth but was still holding him firmly in her hand, and he was going to lose it.

"Come here," he managed. "I want...you."

This made her smile, and he relaxed a little as he pulled his underwear back over his hips to cover himself for the time being.

She straddled him and leaned forward to kiss him, his musk mingling in each other's mouths before he moved on top of her. She was still mostly clothed, but he quickly pulled her pants off of her and brought his mouth back to hers.

He unclasped her bra a moment later and he brought his face to her breasts, relishing in the feel of them again. He loved the way she'd arch against him as he suckled her sweet skin into his mouth. As his mouth made sweet advances, his hand made its way between her thighs, parting them slowly. His fingers worked her, feeling her moan and thrash above him.

"I need you," she begged, pulling at his hair lightly the way he liked it.

He grabbed her face tenderly and pressed his lips against hers. "Are you sure?" He whispered, breaking the kiss.

"God yes, Ned," she begged desperately and spread her legs wider as Ned held her hips for support. "I want you, bad."

"Me too," he said as he kissed her and slightly moved off her. He reached over to open his side table an grabbed a condom quickly before turning to look at Katie. "I know how you like to do this."

She smirked as she grabbed the condom from him and ripped it open. She slid it onto him as their lips met and she straddled him. When he slipped inside of her, she was sure that nothing could ever feel better. They both moan as their bodies connect in a way that they've been thinking about for so long.

He felt himself swell as her walls clenched around him. Ned began moving his hips up and off the bed slowly, and she sighed at the pleasure of him filling her. She slowly rose and fell on her knees

She'd missed this. Missed him, them together. God, their sex had always been so good and they finally getting the knack of it.

She stretched with each thrust of his hips, and it's intoxicating. He reached down to start rubbing her center. He wanted to feel her come as he moved inside of her. They found a rhythm easily; as Ned moved, Katie matched his thrusts perfectly. Their bodies fit like the last two pieces of a puzzle.

She felt her release building in her lower half, just as he cried out into her neck, grasping her hips tightly against his. "Katie.. I don't know how much longer..."

"I'm so close, baby," she gasped and pushed her hips upward so that he hit that spot deep inside her that made her see stars. "Oh, god…. Ned."

Then she's falling, and it's glorious. Every muscle in her body screamed with her release and worked him toward his. His quick, hard thrusts still as he pulled out of her and spurts his release against her leg.

It had been better than either one of them could have imagined. Katie turned to face Ned who was lying next to her trying to catch his breath.

"Fuck, Katie..." He smiled over at her, licking his lips as he reached over to touch her face. "That was… really good."

She leaned in, lying against his chest and pressed a kiss to his skin. "It was… I think we can both say we've missed the sex." She leaned up to place a soft kiss on his lips.

He chuckled against her lips. "I definitely missed the sex," he reassured her. "But I think I missed sleeping in the same bed with you the most."

She rubbed her hand up and down his chest. "Well then good thing I'm staying the night," she said, leaning up to kiss his lips before settling her head on his shoulder for the night.

The next morning, she woke beside him and rolled over to check the time. She grabbed her phone and the first thing she realized was she had a text from her brother. It was unusual considering it was a request to hang out. He usually wasn't the one to reach out first, it was usually her.

**Bro - April 12th - 9:03 am: Double date with me and Lucy? It's five dollar all you can bowl night.**

She rolled over in bed, to see that Ned was also awake on his phone. "Morning," she whispered.

He glanced up, rubbing his eyes and smiling. "Good morning," he yawned, stretching slightly. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," she said softly. "I always fall asleep pretty fast after sex, but that's not what's on my mind. My brother just invited us out bowling with his girlfriend."

"So you're staying a little longer?" He asked.

"I did originally plan to stay the weekend," she shrugged, leaning into his open arms. "Why, do you want me to go?"

He pulled her closer, holding her face in his palms. "No," he breathed. "And I'd love to go bowling with you."

* * *

Seth's Lanes was a dumpy old bowling alley just outside Grandview, but it's known for both the overly oily lanes and delicious snack bar offerings.

But most people like it for the dirt cheap specials (all you can bowl for five bucks) and general ambiance associated with poor lighting and the stench of stale beer.

Aaron always used their bowling nights as a way to introduce his family or friends to the current girl in his life. Well, the same girl for the last year at least, and Lucy was pretty fun.

Tonight, they're all hanging out for the first time in a while. When her brother had texted her with the invite, it had taken her by surprise.

Aaron's truck was already in the parking lot when she pulled in with Ned, and she found herself feeling excited to kick her little brother's butt. She usually was okay at bowling, some games were better than others

She put her car in park and grabbed her purse before meeting him by the entrance of the building with Ned.

"Hey bro, thanks for the invite. Where's Lucy?" She asked as Ned opened the door for her, letting her and Aaron in before coming in behind them and catching up. His arm was around her waist as they went up to the counter and got their shoes.

"She's running a little late from cheer practice. She said she should be here soon," her brother said. "Size twelve."

"God your feet are like dad's," she rolled her eyes and grabbed her shoes.

"And you're what? A six? You're like mom," her brother tossed back at her before finding a chair to sit in and put his shoes on.

Katie slipped her sneakers off and her feet into the bowling shoes. She had to find her favorite bowling ball. It was always a search to find them, and maybe Ned had already gone to look.

She searched all the racks on the back wall and then started the arduous process of checking the ball returns at each lane. She tried out others on the way, but they're either too heavy or don't fit her fingers. Besides, she wanted the pretty blue swirly one and her lucky green one. She once bowled an impressive 187 with it.

"Hey!" She spun around to find Ned smiling at her, the lucky green one in his left hand, and pretty blue swirly one in his right. "I got those balls you like." As soon as the words leave his mouth, his smile fell and then he dropped his head dramatically, shamed.

"Thanks," she grinned, taking them both from him. "For the balls and, you know, being the first to say something awkward."

He was about to say something else when her brother appeared, clapping his hands to get their attention. "All right, Lucy just texted me that she won't be here for a while. Let's get a game in now so that the ass-kicking can commence."

Ned and Katie share a look because while they both admittedly suck, her brother really sucked.

She was first up, and she knocked down four pins on the first ball, and three more on the second. "More than half," Ned whistled while writing down her score. He gave her a wink and a kiss on the cheek as she passed him. "Nice start."

Ned went next, and as always, took an obnoxiously long time positioning his body and setting up his shot. Her eyes lingered a little too long on his…form, while he did so. There's something mesmerizing about the way his grey tee clung to his arms and shoulders and then just hung around his hips. She got a peek of his olive cotton belt when he bent forward, but his shirt doesn't ride up enough to reveal any skin.

Stupid belt, she thought and then smirked. She knew that belt. She'd unbuckled that belt about at least a thousand times.

"Today, Ned!" Her brother yelled.

That broke her out of her trance, but only for a second because when he actually released the ball, she did get a tiny flash of his bare back and that set her off again long enough to miss his next shot and both of Aaron's.

"Katie? Earth to my sister?" Aaron waved his hand in front of her, and she pushed it away, annoyed.

She grabbed her ball and hit the gutter both times on her turn. Damnit. Damnit to all hell, Ned was going to pay for that.

* * *

When they're on the sixth frame and Ned's up again, she took the time to talk to Aaron about school and anything new in his life. He didn't end up telling her much besides that Chemistry was hard and having a girlfriend was harder.

That doesn't help her much, considering she doesn't really know much about Lucy and hadn't gotten a chance to know her very well. But she'd seemed nice for the few times she'd seen her around and her brother seemed to really like her.

"The house is quiet without you around," Aaron said with a shrug.

She laughed and teased him in return. Maybe he did miss her.

"Dammit, Aaron!" Ned yelled as he tried to find his ball in the packed return rack. Her brother usually blamed the ball for every poor frame and then immediately went to find a new one, so they accumulate quickly. "You've got too many balls!"

"Impressive, isn't it?" Aaron chuckled.

"Put some back!" Ned said, pointing at the full return rack. "Now."

The teen does it begrudgingly, and then Katie watched as Ned got a spare. When he returned, she welcomed him with a high five and a kiss. "That was hot," she said. "You never get higher than seventy usually." His score was almost at 100, just under with a 95.

"Thanks," he winked as he took a seat next to her. "You're doing good! You've got… 87."

Katie shrugged. "Eh, I'm just warming up." She said, leaning into him. "Suck it, little bro."

"Hey, shut up," Aaron called back from the fault line.

He went in the gutter the first time, and then knocked down two pins. When he came back to sit down as Katie was readying for her turn, she heard Aaron tell Ned that there's nothing like having a cheerleader for a girlfriend.

Ugh, gross.

"Man, she was just practicing some of the stuff she does at games and damn… it's nothing I ever imagined." Her brother said.

She was so grossed out. Why did she have to hear that? Did Ned like it when any of his cheerleader girlfriends would dance for him? Did he want her to do that?

She ground her teeth before releasing the ball, and all she got was three damn pins both tries. She glared at her brother while Ned was taking his turn, but Aaron feigned innocence. Before they finished the final frame, a pretty blonde joined their group and wrapped her arms around Aaron. She hadn't even recognized Lucy at first. Her brother absolutely beamed in her presence, and Katie felt hurt that she knew so little about someone who obviously made her little brother so happy.

"Hey, Lucy is here." Aaron suddenly spoke. "This is Ned, you remember him. He's dating my sister, Katie, and he's my mom's friend Delia's son."

They both greeted her politely and Lucy smiled as she took turns shaking their hands. Katie could tell by the overly enthusiastic expression and the sweat on her palm that the girl nervous to be alone with her for the first time. Was she that threatening?

"So Aaron says you're a student at NYU?" Lucy asked, moving to sit with her and chat. "I guess that explains why we've never really gotten a chance to know each other. I got to my grandparent's house in Texas for most of the summer and that's when you come home mostly, right?"

She nodded slowly. "Yeah, I try and come home as much as I can. My boyfriend lives her after all," she shrugged.

"But it must be fun living in New York City, right?" Lucy asked. "I've always wanted to go there, but I've never taken the drive yet."

"You and Aaron should come sometime before I move back this summer," she suggested. "Maybe for a day or something. It would be fun."

They all bowl a game together, but Katie found her mind wandering every time it's not her turn. She's glad the tension was thawing between them all but doesn't feel the relief she assumed she would.

Aaron nudged her with his elbow, indicating that she's up next, so she walked to the ball return for the pretty blue swirly one. Ned passed her on the way and smiled at her again. It immediately rattled her. Maybe that's his strategic bowling move.

She threw the ball down the lane without a care and then walked away.

"Woo!" she heard her boyfriend call out.

She looked back to find that she had gotten a strike. She made her way back to the gang who were all huddled around a nearby table now instead of sitting down.

"The elusive strike! Congratulations!" her brother said.

"So hot," Ned winked at her.

"Thanks." He's standing so close to her, and she loved that she can just reach out and touch him whenever she wanted. Her hand lingered on his arm, on the fair skin not covered by his short-sleeved shirt. She loved how hard his muscles were, how her own hand looked so small when it was wrapped around his bicep, which it often was whenever he was around her. Whether it was like this or on top of her. Ah, that was always her favorite position.

She found herself absently moved her hand over him, feeling her fingertip gliding down from the inside of his elbow to his wrist. He was watching her do it, and when she lifted her head and her eyes met his, she saw the lust there.

She was loving this stage of their relationship. It was almost like a honeymoon, and even if it was a phase, she was going to enjoy every second of it.

"Hey, Katie!" Lucy called out, unknowingly helping her further seduce Ned with the swoosh of her hair over her shoulder. "Want to sit out the next game and get something to eat?"

"Yes," she said, spinning away from Ned without a second glance.

Lucy suddenly told her that she had been dying to try some of the legendary food here ever since her brother mentioned it, and Katie offhandedly mentioned that the onion rings were good. Her face was still hot with embarrassment.

"I think I want to try one of those deep-fried Oreos," Lucy said, and then cups her hand to her mouth to yell for her brother. "Aaron? Do you want me to get you some deep fried Oreos?"

His shoulders slump dejectedly and he sadly shook his head. "I'm already over for my weight count this week."

Lucy just shrugged and moved to the counter to order.

They sat down while they're waiting for the food, and Lucy began chatting animatedly. She tried to be polite for her brother's sake and so she asks about her cheerleading, and Lucy surprised her by saying that it's only her first year because she wanted to try something new.

"I wasn't sure what I wanted to do after I was the lead in the fall musical, so I thought about trying out for cheer. My mom was a cheerleader, so she nudged a little." Lucy explained.

"That's awesome," she said curiously. "I was a dancer and I like writing."

Lucy seemed pretty easy to talk to and she was already talked to her more than any other girl Aaron had ever brought to bowling night. Katie wasn't normally one for chit-chat with people she wasn't good friend with, but she's not really hating it with her now.

"So, I don't know if Aaron told you, but I'm sort of an astrology geek." Lucy leaned in, whispering, "I've pegged Ned as a Gemini. Is that right?"

Katie laughed a little. Yeah, this was definitely something more her style. "His birthday is on June 21st."

"Ah, so he's on the cusp! Interesting!" Lucy tapped her chin thoughtfully. "You though…I can't quite figure you out."

"Cancer," she admitted before the girl had a chance to venture a guess.

Not that Katie really believed in any of this stuff. But if ghosts were real, who knew?

"Cancer! Yeah, okay! I can definitely see you as a water sign." Lucy said excitedly. "I'm a Virgo. Very opinionated and strong-willed." Katie wasn't sure what else to say, so she'd fallen silent but the girl was still chirping away happily. "I read palms, too," Lucy admitted bashfully. "Mind if I read yours?"

"Ah, why the hell not?" she said and held out her arm.

Lucy took Katie's hand in both of hers and turned it over to read her palm. The blonde traced her finger along the lines and mounts, her lips pursed in thought.

"You're very loyal," Lucy began, tapping on the other side of her hand then. "Your family and it's values mean the world to you. While you only have a few close friends, the people you choose to let into your life are just as important to you as the ones born into it. There's nothing you wouldn't do for the ones you love." She tapped the other side of her hand. "Your lifeline is strong, too. Stronger than you even know."

Katie swallowed thickly. "You can tell all that just from my hand?"

Lucy's green eyes lifted to meet hers, and then they dart over toward Aaron, who's picking out yet another ball from a different lane's return rack. "Well, no," she admitted, "Your brother talks about you to me a lot too." She tapped her hand before releasing it.

Ned had now joined her brother and was obviously chiding him for his annoying habit again. Both of the girls watch them as they argue playfully.

"Just look at them," Lucy said. "It's like Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble at the Bedrock Bowling Alley."

Katie snorted because damn, they really do look like Fred and Barney together. Their laughter must catch the guys' attention because soon they're walking toward them, still arguing along the way.

"I'm officially implementing a Delay of Game rule," Ned announced when they reach the table.

"Like football?" Lucy giggled.

"Bullcrap," Aaron said adamantly. "Us Clancy's don't play by any rules with bowling."

"I second that," She said, shrugging.

"Smokey, this is not 'Nam. This is bowling. There are rules," Ned said and Aaron joined in to quote the line with a chuckled.

Lucy's brows furrowed in confusion. "Huh?"

"The Big Lebowski," she told her, to clarify. "Expect them to quote it a lot. Aaron will likely be reciting Donny's eulogy from the end before the night is over. It's our dad's favorite movie besides The Godfather."

"Ahh!" Lucy yelled, covering her ears. "Spoiler alert!"

"Damn, Katie! We were gonna watch that tonight!" Aaron groaned.

She slid down in her seat, surprised by their reaction, while Ned watched on in amusement. "Yeah, babe they were gonna watch it tonight," he chided her playfully and held his hand out for her. "C'mon it's your turn, Katie. It's the last frame."

After they've bowled all they can bowl, they return the disgusting bowling shoes for their own and then meet up at the exit to say their goodbyes.

"We're gonna take off," Aaron said. "Still probably watch the movie." He looked at her pointedly. "Though it won't have the same emotional impact now."

"Sorry," she snickered and shrugged.

"It was so great seeing you guys," Lucy said, and then she hugged each of them, somewhat stunning Katie with a tight one.

They all waved to each other as the couple left the building and then Katie turned to Ned, not sure where to go from here.

"What are you thinking?" She asked, seeing him glance at his phone for a moment.

"Want to go grab dinner?" He asked as he looked up and walked toward her.

She nodded. Dinner sounded perfect.


	24. Chapter 24

Dinner was nice.

They'd gone to Lento's because Ned had a gift card, and it's always nice to go to Lento's every once and awhile. They got a small booth and sat close together. It's easy to talk to Ned about anything. And he always hung on her every word, as if she was saying the most important thing in the world.

But she doesn't tell him about confirming her transfer to Rockland until they're walking back to the car together, and when she did, he was ecstatic. His enthusiasm was kind of contagious, and for the first time, she really let herself get excited about it, too.

"I have a student teaching term coming up too. I think Mack will be excited to know I'll be at the elementary school here. So I can't take too many credits at once, but there is some scholarship that I qualified for and it's covering all the tuition."

"That's awesome, Katie. I'm so happy for you," he said, hugging her once more as he opened the passenger door for her.

"And as sad as I am to leave Hannah in the city, Brandon is practically moved into the apartment anyway, so I just need to figure out where I'll be staying. I don't want to be at my parents forever, you know?" She sounded like a little kid yammering on the way she was, but it's hard to care at the moment.

He grinned. "It sounds like things are really falling into place."

"Well, I don't know, I guess. I get to take classes for free at home, so that's nice." She said, smiling at him as she moved to sit in the seat. "I just need to find somewhere to live now."

"You could always move in with me," he said.

"Yeah," she said, grinning now, too. "If that's something you want to do."

"I do, Katie." He said, leaning against the door. "I really do."

She turned slightly and let her legs dangle outside of his his truck, and put her arms on his shoulders. "Okay, I'll live with you, but only if you do the dishes."

"I'll do the dishes, but I should probably get in the car now, don't you think?" he said, motioning to it.

"Yeah, but hold on," she said, pulling his lips to hers for a brief moment before pulling back. "We had to seal the deal first."

"Thank you," he said, pulling back as she moved back to sit in the car so he could close the door and run around. He hopped in and put the key for the car to start to warm up before he turned toward her. "I'm happy you said yes."

"Why would I say no?" She asked. "I mean, this isn't for another two or three months and I think we'll be in a good spot then. This will be good for us."

"I know it will be," he said.

They both go in for a hug at the same time, and he pressed a kiss to her lips as they parted. The way their lips moved and he held her close, it had to be the most sensual and passionate moment she'd ever felt with him.

As they part, she moved to closer to sit near him and buckled up as they drove. She'd never felt closer to him than right then.

It was a short drive back to his apartment. When they got inside, Katie realized she hadn't really looked around the last time.

He got a new lamp. And the coffee table was pushed further away from the couch. Those were the only changes she could spot right away, but it's enough for her to realize that things were definitely different in his apartment.

He hung his keys on a hook by the door and took his coat up. "Uh, what do you want to do," he asked, walking over to settle on the end of the sofa and turn on the tv. He scrolled through the programming guide while she took her boots and jacket off as well. "Did you want to order something On Demand?"

"It doesn't matter." She walked over to plop down next to him. She curled her feet to the side of her and tried to get cozy. "Is there anything on cable? Or we could play scrabble?"

"You always beat me," he rolled his eyes and pressed on the button on the remote. "Harry Potter is on HBO. I think it's the one where they are in the wizard tournament. Spoiler alert: Harry wins and Edward from Twilight dies."

"Forget that then," she laughed. "It's not going to have the same emotional impact on me now. Not like I haven't read the books and seen the movies more than a dozen times."

"The new Avengers movie is about to start on Showtime," he suggested.

"We already saw that one already, right? On our anniversary?" She asked, looking over at him.

"You slept through most of it! And that was forever ago." He chuckled and wrapped his arm around her.

That was forever ago. Ugh. Maybe she could stay awake this time. "That's fine, then babe. I'll try to stay awake this time."

* * *

A few weeks later, Katie had another long weekend off for Memorial Day weekend just before the end of the term. She'd brought a few boxes of stuff to move into his place too. It just felt right, and Ned didn't mind.

After a long hike on a nearby park trail, Katie and Ned settled down on the soft grass on a nearby hll and admired the stars. The sun had set only an hour before, but now the dark blue skies were bright with millions of twinkling lights, and it's rare to get such a beautiful, clear night sky anywhere but Grandview.

"That's the Athena constellation," he said, pointing upwards.

She doesn't know exactly what he's trying to show her. It's just a mess of stars in the vast blue, as far as she could see.

"Really?" She asked, looking over at him.

"No idea," he laughed. "Maybe? I don't even know if Athena has a constellation."

"And here I thought you knew everything," she gasped, rubbing his side. "I'm disappointed in you, Banks."

"I fear the day you realize I'm not perfect," he chuckled, a nervous truth to it.

But she's always thought the same thing about him. What if he woke up one day and didn't think she was enough anymore?

"It's beautiful though, right?" he said, admiring the sky, and she couldn't disagree, admiring him.

"I'm sorry, I'm admiring something much more appealing to me," she admitted and ran her hands through his hair.

"Who, me?" He chuckled, leaning down to press a brief kiss to her lips. "That's a romantic thought, but just not realistic, honey."

She doesn't push anymore. She knew he had always had doubts n his looks, no matter how big his ego could be some times.

There's the sound of children laughing in the distance, and they both turn to see a young family making their way to a minivan. Katie remembered coming to the park with her own parents a lot, a very long time ago. There were times alone and times with her siblings. They were nice memories.

She caught her boyfriend studying her. "Hey, you think you might want kids someday?" he asked. She's noticed that he'd become more comfortable talking about stuff like this since they'd come back together.

There was a time not too many years ago that she didn't think Ned would ever get married or have children or anything like that. She'd always imagined he'd have a revolving door of girlfriends like he'd always had.

Katie, on the other hand, had always wanted to get married one day and to hopefully fall as deeply in love with someone as her mother had with her father. And as much as she had always loved Ned, she didn't know if he would ever be ready for commitment. But that was before she was in a serious relationship. Now, who knew what could happen.

"Of course I want a family," she offered with a small smile.

"Yeah? How many?" He's trying to suppress his enthusiasm at her answer and failing miserably.

"I don't know, two or three." She shrugged.

"Just a few?" He asked.

She snorted. "Yeah, just a few. I don't want to qualify for a reality show on TLC like my parents, thanks."

He chuckled, "I don't think your parent are near TLC show numbers." He lied back in the grass, his hands behind his head. "Two or three is good."

She settled in next to him, pressing a kiss to her chest.

"But we're still probably going to end up on TLC," he added. "You know, with your shoe hoarding and all."

"It was only two boxes," she scoffed and jabbed him the side.

* * *

"Did you ever…think about me, like that, before we were together?" She asked

It's somehow already the night before Katie was going to move back to Grandview. Ned had driven to the city and was staying over to help her move the last of her stuff to his apartment in the morning, and he's been exploring her for the last hour, as if he hasn't seen her naked a thousand times before.

"Yes," he answered solemnly before breaking into a sheepish grin. Then he lowered his mouth to her collarbone and kissed her there. "Your body is ridiculous. The last two years before you graduated… were rough."

She slapped at his shoulder and laughed as his lips tickle her skin. "No. Answer me seriously, Ned."

"You know I did, all the time. I've told you before." He sunk to his stomach and goes to duck his head between her legs, asking, "Need a reminder?"

Of course, she wouldn't mind another one, but she's already had plenty and now she needed to concentrate. So she told him to wait as she grabbed his delicious bicep and used it to urge him upward. "When was the first time you were so crazy for me anyway?" She asked.

"Uh, you probably don't want the details there." He shook his head.

Well, now she definitely wanted to know. She pouted as she ran his hands up and down his sides.

He laughed at her pout but relented. "Okay, you remember that bikini you wore when you were like fifteen?"

"Vaguely. That was the year dad and mom finally let me wear bikinis," she shrugged. She'd bought probably ten that summer when she'd gotten the okay from her parents. "I wore a lot."

"Well, there was this one beach trip in particular that I remember, and I spent the entire time on my stomach because for the first time ever, you didn't look like a total kid anymore." He shrugged, smiling sweetly. His lips moved over her face, kissing her cheekbone, the tip of her nose, her other cheek. Then he leaned in to whisper in her ear, "And you looked so good. I couldn't get you out of my head for days."

She wrapped her arms around him and sighed, content, as she held him. But then a worrisome thought stroke her. "Do you ever wonder about other girls now?"

He pulled back to look at her. "Why would I? I've got everything I'd ever want right here."

She giggled happily against chest as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. She was everything she'd ever wanted too. "Well, what would you think about if you missed me? What's your fantasy?"

He dropped to nuzzle his nose against her pulse point, and doesn't answer. He continued to pepper kisses all over her neck and chest.

"Because if you tell me, maybe we could…you know, act it out." Surely there was a particularly errant sexual fantasy in his brain somewhere during all that time when he was without her, right?

He finally pulled himself away from her long enough to consider the proposition. "It's not like there were a lot of specific scenarios or anything. It's usually just thinking about what you're wearing, imagining taking it off of you, imagining you suddenly wanting me to take it off of you. It never takes much to get me there."

"Really?" She chuckled, shaking her head at him. "That's it?"

"Honestly, I've always felt guilty for thinking about you like that. You were so…pure. Untouchable..." He slid his hand over her arm and entwined his fingers with hers. He gives her hand a firm squeeze. "Still do think that sometimes."

"So you didn't think of me like that at all?" she pressed. She can't help but wonder who he thought about then; she knew that most boys were not angels, especially not Ned.

"No, I've pretty much thought about you all the time. I just felt bad about it after." He leaned in to whisper in her ear, "One time Mack spilled something all over you and I borrowed you my shirt to sleep in… you never gave it back. It just barely covered the tops of your thighs, and that got me off for months."

"Yeah?" she challenged breathlessly, hooking her leg over his hip. She could work with this. "I was… what? Seventeen?

"Yeah. I would imagine you in your bed, wearing that and nothing else." Hs cheeks grew a little red as he spoke and then bit his lip lightly. "Thinking about you touching yourself was good too… I hoped that you were thinking about me when you did it."

Ah, she hadn't thought about him as much she would've thought she would. God help her, she's the very definition of a late bloomer in that area, and by the time she was occasionally touching herself, she was imaging the couple from some softcore late-night movie on cable. Not herself, and never with her crush until she was old enough to know what she was doing.

He doesn't have to know that now, though. Finally, she had a spark to ignite her plan and she's going for it.

"I did," she said, punctuating it with a soft moan. She brought her hand between their bodies and slid it over her underwear, cupping herself for him. "All the time…" He sat back to watch, and as her fingers slipped inside and started a slow tease, he licked his lips in anticipation. She's pretty sure of what kind of things he'd like to hear her say. "I used to picture your fingers rubbing against me like this. I imagined what it was like to kiss you... I wondered what your hair would feel like against the inside of my thighs."

He's practically panting as his hand reached down to cover her hand and take over. "You're so wet," he groaned and pressed his lips against her neck. "You always get so wet for me."

"How does it feel?" she asked. "How does it feel being with me now, after you've wanted me for so long?"

"It's…good, it's better than I ever imagined." He's pulling off her underwear now, but she wasn't ready to give up this control just yet. She ran her hands over his chest, ran her fingers through the smattering of light chest hair. He could barely speak, and his hips pressed her further into the mattress. "Amazing," he finally managed.

He leaned in to capture her lips but she pulled back, locking her eyes with his. "How does it feel to know you'll always be the only one I think about like this anymore?"

He answered her with a kiss, his tongue sliding against hers as they shared a single breath. Her mouth opened wider, inviting him in further. She offered up everything and he greedily wanted it all.

She could feel him reach over for the nightstand, absently trying to find a condom without breaking away from her. But she put her hand out to still his, and when he pulled back to meet her eyes, she gave an almost imperceptible nod. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"I don't want anything between us tonight," she nodded slowly.

He's too far gone to fight her on it, and wanted it too much himself.

They pulled off his boxer briefs together as he kissed her again and he settled inside her. He stopped moving to brace himself, but she rose her hips to urge him forward.

"Do whatever feels good," she whispered.

That's something he said to her a lot, especially when she's on top of him, and his hands were on her hips but she's controlling the movement and angle and speed.

He wanted to last longer, she could see it written all over his face, but it was always a bit overwhelming for him without protection. His thrusts were fast and hard, and the pure intensity of his enjoyment was nearly enough to get her there, but not quite.

She kissed him as he came, and it's the hottest thing she's ever experienced.

* * *

The next morning, he helped her pack the rest of her boxes into his truck (she'd already brought her car home last weekend), but most of everything she's taking with him was already in the bed of his truck, loaded and ready to go since the night before.

"At least this is the last load," he said, closing the tailgate with the tap of his hand. "I can't wait to get you home… to our home, right?"

She's trying so hard to keep it together. She could feel the damn was almost about to break. "What if you end up thinking I look ugly in the morning?" she asked.

He tried not to laugh, but the effort was pitiful. "Nope, never." He cupped her cheeks. "You're the most beautiful, even in the dead of the morning or in the middle of sickness."

"Yeah, right. I was looking rough for a few days when you were in the hospital," she said, shaking her head. "I'm kind of glad you didnt see me like that."

They drove to Grandview and even loaded a few boxes up to his apartment before it started to rain.

"I'm so happy you're finally here," he told her at her door as hey brought the last boxes they brought up inside. He gently kissed her forehead, then ducked to set down the box and kissed her on his way standing back up. "I love you so much," he said with unshed tears shining in his eyes.

"I'm happy too, so happy, Ned. I love you." She pressed another eager kiss to his lips.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: I don't know why I've never written anything about Hannah's wedding to Brandon, considering she is Katie's best friend and basically her adopted sister. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I enjoying writing it xx Mariah**

* * *

It was the Thursday before Katie's best friend's wedding weekend and she was stressed to all hell, especially with the traffic she was driving through.

"Whose wedding are we going to again?" Ned asked.

"You're kidding, right?" She sighed.

Her boyfriend grinned over at her, chuckling as he turned the radio dial down. "Yeah. I am, just trying to lighten the mood babe."

Katie made a face. "I'd hit you if I didn't need both hands for driving right now."

It was true, she did. The rain was coming down in sheets as they drove through the remnants of Tropical Storm Alma on their way up I-95 to New York City.

"God I don't miss the inner city traffic," she groused as an SUV with New Jersey plates cut her off.

"Why on earth did Hannah want to get married in the city of all places?" He asked.

"I think it had something to do with her parents." She shrugged. "I don't know."

Her phone buzzed, jiggling around in the cupholder. Snatching it up before she hurled it out the window, Ned glanced at it.

**4:30 PM - Are you two here yet?**

"Who's it from?" She asked.

"Olivia. She wants to know where we are." He asked.

"Tell her stuck in traffic." She was keeping her eyes on the road in front of her instead of glancing at him or her phone that he was holding, which was definitely a good thing, considering the sheer volume of cars entering the city.

Ned had no idea why it was so busy; it couldn't be Brandon and Hannah's wedding alone that was attracting this much traffic. It couldn't even be rush hour. Usually, people left the city at 4:30 in the afternoon, they didn't go into it.

He typed her response. The phone buzzed seconds later.

"She says she's about to kill Hannah," he chuckled.

"Why?" She asked

The phone buzzed again. "She said, does the term bridezilla mean anything to you?" He howled out loud. "I never thought I'd see the day when Hannah was the tricky one and not you."

"I'd pick your battles, Ned, if you want to get laid this weekend." She reminded him, turning her turn signal on to sneak into the carpool lane now that it had reopened again. "Ask Liv what's wrong."

A few minutes passed before the phone buzzed again and Ned began to read, "According to Liv, the plane Brandon's dad is on won't getting here until tomorrow. He was supposed to be here today. There is something wrong with the flowers and Hannah wants to know who scheduled the huge anime convention for the same weekend as her wedding. Oh, and Liv's zipper on her dress ripped."

Katie sighed. "Okay, I can sew the zipper back on and probably fix the flowers so tell Liv to tell Hannah that everything will be fine when I get there. And my mom will be here tonight, remind her of that too."

She took the exit that led into the inner city, driving past the NYU campus and her old apartment that Hannah shared with Brandon now. It was still weird for her not to live there anymore.

She was closer to the hotel they were staying at than she'd thought, according to her GPS.

"So," he said as he set her phone down. "Hannah has gone Bridezilla, the world's gone to hell, and as you can see, apparently cosplayers will be crashing the wedding." He pointed toward a few convention attendees who were walking down the street toward the Convention Center.

"Well, that explains the group of Batman's I just saw." She muttered.

He groaned. "This weekend's gonna be hell. Why couldn't she have picked another date?"

"Because everyone wanted to get married this year," she answered.

She wasn't wrong.

This was going to be the sixth wedding so far this year that she'd known about from her Facebook or Instagram feed, and she's pretty sure there were still another few on the list, including at least two more that they had been invited to.

Another text from Olivia interrupted their conversation.

**4:50 - WHERE ARE YOU**

Ned looked up to check their surroundings. They were near the front of the Convention Center now. He texted her that they were a block away, if that, when the phone buzzed again. "Apparently if we don't get there soon, she's going to kill Hannah and there will be no wedding."

Katie snickered, shaking her head. "Tell her to take a Xanax," she said.

Olivia was not a patient woman. The woman had a low tolerance for bullshit, stupidity, and drama. And right then, it sounded like Hannah was in full drama queen mode. One that only her best friend could handle. No wonder their friend was about to snap.

They finally made their way around to the Hyatt Regency hotel, opting to spend the extra money on valet parking. Considering the convention and the downpour going on, it was worth the expense.

They grabbed their bags and checked in, grateful that they had made their reservations as soon as Hannah and Brandon announced when and where they were holding their wedding last year. They rode up to their room in an elevator packed with a group of Korean people with elaborately styled hair and eccentric clothing who were talking excitedly and pointing at the various cosplayers.

After dropping off their bags and texting Olivia that they'd arrived, they headed downstairs to the second floor and the Constellation Ballroom.

Hannah was there, talking heatedly with one of the banquet staff, her arms flailing wildly while the poor woman listened to whatever the bride was raving about. Leaning against one wall, they spotted Olivia, her thumbs moving angrily over the touchpad of her phone. In her pocket, Katie felt her phone vibrate. Rather than answer, they made their way over to the short-haired woman.

"Finally!" Olivia said. "Did you bring me anything to drink?"

"There's a bar outside," he reminded Liv as his arm wrapped around her waist.

"Yeah, but I'm not paying twelve bucks for a watered down Bloody Mary with Old Bay in it." Olivia huffed and rubbed her temple. "Like who in the fuck puts Old Bay in cocktails? That shit's for seafood, not drinks."

"We'll grab a beer after the rehearsal," she said.

"Fine, but your man is buying the first round." Olivia paused for a moment, casting her gaze over at Hannah. "Have you gotten your script yet?"

"We just got here," he said slowly.

"Oh, you're going to love it." Olivia cackled "I hope your alcohol tolerance is better than it used to be."

Ned felt his stomach sink. "Exactly what kind of wedding is this?"

Olivia sighed and then grinned. "Just wait and see."

* * *

BANG.

BANG.

BANG.

"Ngh," Katie groaned, rolling over and burying her face into Ned's shoulder.

BANG.

BANG.

BANG.

"Katie! Ned! Open up, damn it!" a high-pitched voice yelled.

"Wha?" Katie sat up, picking up her phone, which was flashing with several unread text messages. Her eyes widened as she noted the time: 11:45. "Shit!" They were supposed to be at brunch at eleven before prepping for the noon photoshoot. "Ned!" she hissed. "Wake up!" She shook his shoulder.

"Five more minutes…" he mumbled sleepily.

"We don't have five more minutes!" She said.

"What?" He groaned, rubbing his eyes.

"We both slept through our alarms and someone's outside banging on our door!" She said.

BANG.

BANG.

BANG.

"Katherine, open the goddamn door!" It was Hannah's voice again.

Ned jerked to a sitting position at the noise, apparently hearing it for the first time. "What the?"

"See?" She said.

"Katie, c'mon!" It was Hannah again. From the sound of her voice, it seemed like she was on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

They looked at each other. "Right," he said. "You deal with the freaked out bride. I'll get in the shower."

Katie slid out of bed, not caring that she was only dressed in a tank top and a pair of Ned's old boxers. She opened the door to peer out into the hall, rubbing her eyes. "What's up?" She said, nonchalantly

As soon as the door opened, Hannah pushed her way inside. "Damn it, Katie! You're late!" Her best friend was dressed in her white jumpsuit that said BRIDE-TO-BE on the back in sparkling letters.

"I know, I know, sorry." She apologized up and down. "But we had to drive from Grandview and you and Brandon kept us up rehearsing until two am. We didn't get to bed until three. Not to mention-"

"We don't have time for excuses, it's fine. Where's your dress?" Hannah huffed.

She blinked to wake herself up more. "In the closet? What's really going on?"

"Put it on," Hannah said, throwing it at her. "Nothing's going on. My best friend and maid of honor was late to the wedding pictures before the ceremony."

"But I'm not ready," she replied. "I think you would rather me be late than stink up your wedding with my car funk."

"Oh, you're right. Good point." Hannah sank down onto the messy bed. "Wait, you didn't screw Ned on here yet, right?"

"No, we passed out the second we go in here last night." She laughed.

"Thank god," Hannah flopped back onto the bed and sighed. "Why didn't Brandon and I elope? Would you and Ned have come to Vegas with us?"

Katie flopped down next to her. "What's up, Han? You've never wanted to elope."

"Did you know my parent's offered me ten thousand dollars to elope or not get married at all so that our marriage wouldn't be in papers?" Hannah turned her head slightly. "They really didn't want their rich friends to know their daughter married a fireman and not some business guru."

She sighed, grabbing her hand. She hated Hannah's parents, even if they gave her best friend life. "It's not about them. This day is about you."

"Yeah, I guess that's why they're not coming. My dad's assistant called to tell me that this morning, so I don't know who's gonna walk me down the asile anymore. Brandon's dad was going to, but his plane was delayed and he won't be here in time." Hannah whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. Her best friend usually had nerves of steel, but anything to do with her parents could make her cry at the drop of a hat. "Like I don't care that they aren't coming, it's just that they didn't even have the decency to call me themselves. How fucked is that?"

"I'm really sorry that your parents suck, Han. You deserve better," she pressed a kiss to her palm. "But hey, my parents will always be there for you. My dad would totally walk you down the aisle."

"It's not the same, Katie." Hannah sighed, more tears coming out now. Hannah cried openly and she did too. "As much as we pretend, I'm not your real sister and I'm not a Clancy. I'm not gonna steal your dad from you. You should be the first person he walks down the aisle."

"Hannah, it doesn't matter if you aren't my real sister. You have always had a place in the family," she reassured her as she wrapped her arm around her. "Who took us to our soccer games and dance competitions?"

"Your dad," Hannah sniffled.

"And who gave us a pep talk and took us for coffee on the drive to our first day of high school?"

"Your mom," Hannah whispered

"Exactly, you're a damn Clancy by default Hannah!" Katie explained, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "So grow a pair and ask my dad to walk you down the aisle at your wedding. You know he will do in a damn heartbeat."

"I know. I don't know what I would've done without your parents," Hannah sighed.

"Probably been super lonely and would've grown up to be a snob just like your parents," she laughed and rolled her eyes. "Thank God that didn't happen."

"Yeah, how long do you think you're gonna be?" Hannah asked.

"Well, if you go away, Ned and I should be downstairs in twenty minutes, thirty at the most." She explained.

"Okay," Hannah breathed. "I'm just freaking out. It's still raining, and the few covered locations we wanted to use have all been taken over by people dressed in funny costumes. I think I saw one guy carrying around a giant cross that was bigger than him."

"Jesus?" She asked.

"No, he was wearing a suit," Hannah muttered.

"So, corporate Jesus? Does that mean your parents approve of him?" She said, giggling a little.

It didn't make Hannah laugh as much as she wished and she sighed. "Oh, Han, just take a breath. Everything's gonna be fine. See if you can find my dad while I'm getting ready, okay?"

Hannah shrugged. "Ok. I'll see if I can." Her friend didn't move and looked around the hallway while chewing on her lip.

She just shook her head. "Look, Han, go. If you can grab me a croissant or a bagel or something, I will happily bear your children if you can't have any or whatever you need me to do because that's my job as your Maid of Honor. But before I can swoop in and save the day, I need you to leave so I can get naked and in the shower."

"Thanks, Katie," Hannah said, making a face. "And as beautiful as you are, that's not an image I really wanted to think about even if I'be seen naked more time than I can count. Besides, I think I should be able to have kids, so just concentrate on making babies with Ned Banks, but not before I get married, okay?"

Katie could not contain her laughter as she showed her friend the door. "Bye, Hannah," she said, shoving her out the door and almost into her dad, who barely managed to dodge out of the way. "Hey, dad," she called, "Han needs to talk to you, so she stops freaking out and rushing me."

Her dad looked her up and down. "Nice boxers, Katie."

"Hey, don't judge." She hastily replied. "It was the first thing I grabbed in an exhausted state. I thought they were my shorts."

"Ohhhhh." Her dad nodded and wrapped his arm around Hannah. "Right. That's totally what happened." He winked at her and she sighed. "Your mom and I'll take care of the bride-to-be. You get dressed."

She gave Hannah a thumbs up and a wink. "Ask him," she mouthed and then closed the door behind her. Slipping into the bathroom, she hastily shed her pajamas and stepped into the shower behind Ned.

"So, the bridezilla freakout was taken care of?" He asked, not even bothering to turn around.

"Yup," Katniss replied, reaching around her boyfriend for the soap. "It was pretty rational. Her parents decided they aren't coming today."

"You're fucking kidding me right?" He sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Of course. That's terrible."

"Yeah, so I gave her a pep talk and told her she should ask my dad to give her away. He's pretty much her dad too," she said, shrugging. "So she's on her way to get smothered by my parents with calming words and another Clancy pep talk."

He turned to look at her with a little smirk on his face. "Well good. She probably needs it." He ran his hands through his hair as the soap from it poured over his body as water spilled over his head. "I'm glad thing are looking up."

She nodded. "Now move. You're hogging all the hot water."

The two switched places, Katie leaning back to wet her hair. He took the soap from her and started lathering up her front. "Any chance we, uh, might have time for a quickie?" he asked, his eyes darkened with lust.

Katie giggled, enjoying his ministrations. God, she wanted to. "Regretfully, no. I think Han might blow her lid if we're any later to the pictures. Plus, she strictly said we can't until after she gets married when you came in here."

He threw his head back in laughter. "Yeah, you're probably right." he said.

She stood up on her tiptoes then and gave him a quick kiss, reaching down to grab his semi-hard erection lightly. "We should probably get moving, but hang on to this for me. I might want him later."


	26. Chapter 26

Fifteen minutes after Katie and Ned got out of the shower, they were downstairs with the bride and the bridesmaids. The bridesmaids were dressed in varying shades of orange, ranging in color from the deep almost reddish sunset orange that Olivia was wearing to a pale peach on her little sister Mackenzie.

Katie's dress was different, a gray with an orange sliver along the hem because she was Hannah's Maid of Honor. Similarly, as Brandon's Best Man wore a light pearly gray suit with an orange vest mirroring the color on Katie's dress. The groomsmen all had vests in shades of orange which matched the bridesmaids' dresses.

Hannah took one look at them and exclaimed, "Finally! I'm so happy you're ready," her best friend hugged her quickly. "It's still pouring and I think my wedding day is ruined!" She burst into a flood of tears.

She turned to look at her mom, who shrugged. Had Melinda not gotten anywhere either? Had her dad told her he'd walk her down the aisle?

She came up, putting her arms around her best friend. "There, there, Han. It's okay. Your wedding day isn't ruined, don't you know it's good luck if it rains on your wedding day?"

"But it's not supposed to happen during the pictures!" Hannah wailed.

"I'm sure that you'll get lots and lots of beautiful pictures, okay?" She reassured her.

"But I wanted them by the fountain, Katie," Hannah sighed.

She looked up at the rest of the wedding party with an expression that screamed 'I don't know what to say' on her face.

"It's just everything's going wrong!" Hannah hiccuped through her tears. "First, God decided he hates me because it's raining on my wedding day, then Brandon's dad's plane was late, not to mention Liv's zipper broke and my bouquet's all wrong, and… you know my parents suck." Suddenly the blonde's brow furrowed. "What's up with your hair?"

Katie reached up and touched the simple straightened hair she'd done in the small amount of time she had. "What's wrong with my hair?" She asked.

"It's so… boring! You always straighten your hair," Hannah sighed.

"Yes, but what's wrong with my hair?" She asked again.

"Can we at least make it look pretty?" Hannah's lip quivered.

Katie sighed. "Yes, we can make it look pretty. As long as you can find someone to do my hair, we can make it pretty, Han."

Hannah brightened up. "Andrew!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs. "Andrew, I need you!"

An impeccably dressed Andrew, wearing perfect eyeliner appeared in the doorway. "Did you call for me?"

"Fix Katie's hair. Make her pretty." Hannah sighed. "Her hair is boing."

"I think Katie is already very pretty on her own, but I'll think of something to do with her hair," Andrew said with a wink. "Be glad I grew up with sisters."

She took a seat while Andrew got to work, whipping out a blowdryer, curling iron, and various instruments of hair care. All around the rest of the room, the various bridesmaids continued touching up their makeup and taking turns comforting an increasingly distraught Hannah, while Ned hung out in a corner with her younger brother and dad, playing on his cellphone. The groomsmen and Brandon were nowhere to be seen anymore.

"Where's Brando?" She asked from her seat, wincing every time Andrew's brush found a snarl in her hair.

"He's next door," Olivia answered.

Andrew leaned down. "Take a deep breath and close your eyes."

A cloud of hairspray descended over her and she accidentally breathed some of the fumes in. She promptly started coughing.

"No! Stop coughing!" Hannah cried. "You'll ruin your hair!"

She was unable to stop herself from glaring at her best friend. "Breathing - is - an - issue."

"Just don't breathe then!" Hannah groaned.

"Han, I think she kind of has to breathe dofus," Olivia pointed out.

Hannah sighed. "Yeah, I guess."

Just then, Brandon's mother entered the room, looking dressed and ready for pictures. "I've got your yarmulke, Brandon! Wait, where is he?"

"I thought he wasn't wearing a yarmulke," she said slowly to her friend.

"He's not," Hannah said firmly. "No one's wearing yarmulkes."

"I already ordered them to the groomsmen," Brandon's mother argued.

"No one is wearing yarmulkes, Connie. This is not a Jewish wedding." Hannah sighed.

"I know, but it would mean so much if my son could have this little bit of his heritage at this wedding, Hannah." Brandon's mother, Connie, suggested.

"But Brandon and I already decided we weren't going to have any religious symbols in our wedding," Hannah replied. "Not Jewish, not Catholic. Nothing!"

"But it'd mean so much to our family," Brandon's mother sighed.

Katie got out of the chair and stomped over to the other room to the sound of Hannah's wails. She was not dealing with this meltdown alone. She had to find Brandon. She gave Ned a quick kiss on her way out. "I'll see you in a minute, honey." Then, before anyone could protest, she slipped next door to where the groom and the groomsmen were getting ready. "What has gotten into your mother, Brandon?" She asked without any preamble.

The groom blinked. "What's she doing now?"

"She wants you guys to wear yarmulkes," she muttered. "Despite Hannah not wanting you to."

"I thought you guys weren't all that observant?" The best man said. "I mean, you eat bacon. Your family even has a special bacon pan!"

"Mmm, bacon," Brandon's little brother said.

Brandon just sighed. "I don't know what's gotten into her. She and Han have been butting heads about everything these last few weeks."

"Any particular reason why?" She asked.

"First it's because Han won't convert, then it was because we're not getting married in a synagogue, next it was because we aren't having a kosher reception. It's like everything we have planned is wrong to her." Brandon rubbed his face and then shook his head. "It's been a lot of stress. Not to mention what happened this morning with her parents"

"Yeah, I know. I think I fixed it though," she sighed. "I don't know if she asked my dad to walk her down for sure or not."

Brandon nodded. "She did. It was nice to see her relax for a minute, especially when Jim was like why would you ever think I say no. It was good."

"Good," she said, smiling. "Back to your mom, do you care about any of that? On a scale of one to ten, how much does it bother you that Hannah isn't converting?"

"Negative three thousand." Brandon sighed. "Look, you guys can wear the yarmulkes if you want to, but none of you have to." He turned to Katie. "I'll talk to my mom. Will you send her over here? I don't want to ruin the don't see the bride tradition."

She nodded and patted his shoulder. "Okay, I'll send your mom over. I'll see you on the flip side, Brando."

* * *

"How's Liv doing?" Katie asked Ned, who was standing next to her, holding the girl up.

"Um, good question," he said.

She sighed and repositioned herself against the wall she was leaning on. The wedding party was congregated in the foyer to the Constellation Ballroom, waiting for their cue to enter the reception. Ned had come to check on her after she sent him about five texts.

So far, it had been a crazy day, and the worst was yet to come.

The chaos from earlier had ended when the rain lifted briefly, allowing the group to get a few pictures outside. Granted, they had to fight off a Final Fantasy group who wanted the same location on the sky bridge, but foam plastic swords were no match against Hannah in full bridezilla mode. The cosplayers wisely retreated in the face of the dangerous blonde in a wedding dress.

They got a few nicely posed pictures, but then Hannah demanded that they take part in the newest wedding picture rage of snapping a photo while everybody jumped in the air. The first problem occurred when Olivia's breasts fell out of the bodice of her dress. Not that she cared, but the passing teenagers certainly got an eyeful.

The second problem came when Liv (who apparently had the worst luck out of everyone) injured her right ankle walking down the aisle. Afterward, to get through the rest of the night she took one too many of her prescription painkillers. Fortunately for her, but unfortunately for the rest of them, the pain pills did the trick. Olivia wasn't feeling any pain; however, she was also high as a kite and about as floppy as a wet noodle.

"When are you and Katie getting married?" Olivia asked, her voice light and dreamy.

He froze, staring back at his girlfriend's good friend. Yeah, he and Katie have been together for almost two years, but they hadn't really talked about marriage other than in 'maybe someday' terms. They were still young. They had time before that was a real conversation.

Right?

He smiled nervously at Liv and Katie, then said, "I don't think it'll happen anytime soon."

Olivia pouted, sticking out her lower lip like a child. "But I want you two to get married!"

"You do?" He asked, not sure he really wanted to know the answer.

Liv continued, blissfully unaware, "Yep! You're just so cute, and your kids would be so cute…" The woman trailed off, staring at something they couldn't see.

"Okay, why don't we go over here and lean against the nice wall?" Brandon said, herding her away from the pair. "Thanks for keeping an eye on her, but I think we just need to wait for these pills to wear off before she goes out there."

He shared a glance with his girlfriend. "So… she's a little high."

"Definitely. Superman high," she agreed, clutching at her side with laughter.

He heard the booming of the microphone and the doors opened. Thank god. Now they could have a good time.

They made their way through the ballroom to find their seats at the long thin table up on the stage. She sighed. Just what she always wanted: three hundred people watching her drop salad down her cleavage. But at least she and Ned were sitting together, which didn't seem to be the case for everyone. It must help that Hannah was her best friend and would never do anything to intentionally piss her off.

She spotted one of the other bridesmaids arguing quietly with a man who'd she'd introduced as her boyfriend when he'd stopped by the rehearsal the night before. She knew that everyone was supposed to have assigned seating, but didn't know why Hannah didn't have the man, whatever his name was, sit up on the dais with his date. From what she could make out, the guy didn't even have an actual assigned seat and there were no open seats at any of the large round tables. The man was asking, justifiably, if he should just find someplace else to eat and wait back in their hotel room.

Eventually, Brandon's mom escorted the boyfriend to a table along one side of the room as a waiter squeezed a ninth chair around a table for eight. Smiling awkwardly at one of Hannah's second cousins and Brandon's Great-Aunt, the man finally took his seat.

As he sat down, she could hear the aunt ask in a loud voice, "So are you Jewish?" The man shook his head. "So when are you going to convert?"

She suppressed the urge to facepalm. Considering the situation that placed him at that table, that was one relationship she didn't see lasting after this.

The bandleader, an older man with a bright blue hairdo that matched his sparkling sequined blue suit, called the bride and groom out to do the hora. Everyone made their way to the dance floor and started clapping while two special chairs were brought in for Hannah and Brandon.

They sat down in the chairs and a bunch of men came up and got ready to lift them. As the crowd watched and clapped, the two groups lifted up the bride and groom. There was a moment of panic as Brandon's chair tipped forward slightly and she realized that his little brother, who was still not fully grown, had the right front corner. He managed to push it up again and Brandon luckily did not fall.

Katie could see a look of terror on Hannah's face. She was clutching the armrests with white-knuckled hands and her face was turning slightly green. It was clear that this was her attempt to honor Brandon's family traditions, and that she was regretting every moment of it.

After a few minutes of the bouncing, the groups lowered them back to the floor and Hannah clutched at Brandon, resting her face against his chest, while the actual dancing began around them. She felt sorry for her best friend; for the uninitiated, Jewish dancing could be a bit frightening.

After the hora was done, they finally called everybody to eat. As they were taking their seats, she leaned over and whispered to Han, "Might want to stick to water for the rest of the night. You don't want to be nursing a hangover on your wedding night."

"That's the plan," Hannah responded. She lifted her wine glass. "This is sparkling grape juice. Don't worry about me, Katie. I'm fine. Nothing is standing in the way of me and my wedding night."

She noticed Ned and Brandon let out dual sighs of relief.

Then, it was finally time for dinner. For a catered event in a hotel, the food was actually quite good. She and Ned scarfed their plates down quickly, only to look up and realize that the rest of the assembled group was still working on their soup and salad.

She looked over, noticing that one of Hannah's closer cousins, Bristel was picking at her food, muttering under her breath. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"This isn't kosher," Bristel muttered

She blinked. "It's fish."

"It's swordfish," Bristel huffed.

"That's not kosher?" She asked.

"Of course not," she muttered. "Why couldn't they have a vegetarian option?"

Katie looked at her plate, thinking about offering something to Bristel, but everything was gone. She'd been too hungry to wait.

Deciding she couldn't stand any more complaining, she headed to the back of the ballroom and the foyer. She slipped out and leaned against the counter leading toward the coatroom. After a couple of minutes, she felt someone come up behind her and place large warm hands on her shoulders.

"How much longer?" she asked, not even bothering to turn around.

Ned chuckled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Uh, there's the rest of the reception and then there's the afterparty."

She groaned. "Why did we do this again?"

"Because your best friend is getting married," he answered.

"Right." She turned around, looking up at her boyfriend "I don't think I've ever been to a more stressful wedding."

"I agree," he said. "But the year's not done yet. Something could top this."

She groaned again.

He grinned. "If you keep doing that, people will think we're having sex."

"I would much rather be having sex with you than doing this right now." She sighed.

His green eyes darkened. "That could be arranged."

She looked up at him, taking in the lust in his eyes and remembering that they'd missed their typical morning quickie because she'd promised Hannah. She reached down between his legs. "Is this bad boy still waiting for me?" She had only promised to wait until after Hannah was married, which had already happened.

"Always," he answered, swooping down to capture her mouth.

She returned the kiss eagerly, wrapping her arms around his neck. He slipped his hands underneath her rear and lifted her up so that he didn't have to bend down to kiss her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled her mouth from his lips. "Not here. Someone would be able to walk in."

"Where?" he breathed.

She glanced around, looking for a place which could afford them some privacy. "The coatroom," she answered with a smirk. "No one's looking for their coats right now."

"Except for the cosplayers," he chuckled.

"Fuck the cosplayers." She muttered.

"I'd rather fuck you," he said.

"Then get your ass into the coatroom," she licked her lips.


	27. Chapter 27

Ned slipped into the unlocked room, Katie still in his arms. He set her down on top of the row of cubbies for bags and other accouterments. Lowering his head to her neck, he kissed and licked his way down the column of her throat to her shoulder. He slid the thin spaghetti strap of her dress off and continued open-mouthed kissing and nibbling down to the top of her right breast. Nudging the fabric to one side, he slipped her breast out.

"No bra?" he asked, looking up at her.

"My boobs look weird with bras in dresses." She sighed.

He palmed the breast, twisting it slightly so that the nipple puckered underneath the flat of his hand. "I think they're perfect. No matter what." Removing his hand, he sucked the hardened nub into his mouth, worrying at it with his teeth until she gasped.

She didn't want to admit it, but the fabric of her dress had been rubbing against her nipples the entire day and she kept having to sneak out and re-flatten them so that people wouldn't get the wrong idea. The unintentional side effect was that her breasts were super sensitive and the feeling of his mouth on her nipple was almost enough to make her come.

"Ned…" she breathed.

He tore his mouth from her and looked up, resting his chin on her sternum. "Yes, baby?"

"Stop playing with me." She begged.

"Not yet," he said, smirking, transferring his attention to her left breast and slipping his hand up the inside of her thigh to her now sodden panties. He pushed the lacy fabric out of the way and slipped his fingers into her core, his thumb circling around her with a certainty born of experience. The guy knew how to get her off. Not that it would take much in her excited state. "I'm having fun. Aren't you?"

She could feel her orgasm building and leaned her head back to rest it on the wall of the coatroom. "Oh, fuck…" she moaned, causing him to chuckle around her nipple.

He redoubled his attention and she leaned back, surrendering herself to his ministrations. He loved making her come. Not that she was complaining. He curled his fingers, pressing against the slightly roughened patch on the inside of her. Biting her lip to stop herself from crying out so she wouldn't be heard by the reception next door, she exploded, quivering around his thrusting fingers. As she came down off of her high, she looked down to see him smirking up at her.

"I bet you're so proud of yourself," she murmured.

Licking his fingers clean, he said, "What can I say? I'm damn good."

She raised her eyebrows. "And no false modesty either."

"None, my love," he chuckled and pressed their lips together momentarily.

"Why don't you get up here and let me take care of you?" She mewled, biting her lip.

He shook his head. "No. I've got something else in mind." He knelt down and slid her dress up her thighs. When he reached the waistband of her underwear, he slid them down her legs, tossing them over his shoulder behind the coat rack against one wall without care. Smirking up at her once more, he leaned in and gave her still sensitive flesh an exploratory lick.

She was unable to stifle her cry. "Fuck… Ned." Apparently, those were the only two words in her vocabulary anymore.

He pulled his mouth away. "I love it when you say my name like that." He leaned in, drawing her needy bundle of nerves into his mouth, sucking on it lightly before nibbling at it with his lips.

"Fuck! Ned!" she repeated, unable to come up with anything else.

Her entire brain couldn't concentrate when was his mouth on her most intimate regions. She wanted to protest that it wasn't fair, that she owed him, but she couldn't get the thought, let alone the words, out. The only thing she could do was ride out the cresting second orgasm that he was so determined to give her. Still reeling from her first climax, she came quickly, shuddering around his mouth.

As her boyfriend coaxed her through another orgasm, she finally managed to draw enough breath to say, "Stop. Ned, stop."

He immediately pulled back, his eyes meeting hers. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked, licking his lips.

She shook her head. "Too sensitive," she panted.

"Wanna switch places?" he asked.

She grinned, nodding her head again.

He helped her down, making sure she wasn't going to collapse to the floor in a boneless heap, before hopping up onto the cubby and waiting patiently. She took a few steadying breaths, legs still shaking, and reached out to caress his rock hard erection through the fabric of his suit pants.

She reached up and undid the hook and eye and pulled down the zipper. Slipping her small hand into the opening, she gently stroked him free through the slit of his boxers until it stood at attention, the rest of him still fully clothed. She stroked him a few times experimentally, getting a feel for just how hard he was, then bent her head down and licked his shaft from the base all the way to the tip. When she reached the end, she ran her tongue along his slit before slipping just the head into her mouth. Above her, she heard him gasp and she sucked in her cheeks, running the tip of her tongue along the really sensitive spot just under the head.

"Katie..." He ground out. "Oh, dear God... yes."

She bobbed her head up and down along his shaft, reveling in the knowledge that she could turn the tables on him so quickly. She felt him reach down, tangling his fingers in her hair. With a growl of annoyance, she felt his fingers picking at her hair, pulling out the bobby pins and tossing them willy nilly around the room, clinking off of the wall, in his haste to get her hair free.

That was something else she loved about him. He was kind of obsessed with her hair. Whenever they were alone, he would often pull her into his lap and start running his fingers through her hair. He said it was calming, one of his favorite things to do. When her hair was free from its confines, he pulled her up from him and captured her mouth with his. Once she was finally able to pull herself away, she looked at him askance.

"I don't want to come in your mouth," he answered her unspoken question.

"Then where do you want to come?" she asked breathlessly.

"In you," he groaned. "Can I?"

She bit her lip and thought about the last time she'd had her period. Would it be safe? After a moment of thinking, she knew they should be good. She'd just had her period a little over a week ago. She shouldn't ovulate for another week.

She looked around the room, realizing there was no good place to lie down. "How do you want me?"

"Turn around and bend over," he smirked.

She leaned against the cubbies, flirtatiously looking over at him.

He hopped down, stroking his hand along her side, flicking her nipple as he passed. When he reached her back, he lifted her skirt, baring her to his sight. Positioning himself at her entrance, he plunged inside, filling her completely.

She gasped, reveling in the fullness. But she wanted more. "Damn it, Ned. Move already!"

He chuckled. "So bossy," and then moved. Rocking back and forth, he thrust in and out, angling himself to hit her just where she needed with every downward thrust.

She keened low in her throat, urging him slipped his hand into her dress and started tweaking her left nipple with every thrust. She could tell by the little noises he made that it wasn't going to be long until he finished, and she wanted one more orgasm before they were done. Reaching down between their legs, she started playing with herself, making sure when he came, she'd come with him.

Pausing slightly, he said, "Let me," and brushed her hand aside to take over. "Brace yourself," he warned. "It's gonna be hard and fast."

"Just the way I like it," she purred.

And then there were no more words, just the sound of flesh sinking into flesh punctuated by heavy breathing and erotic moans. She let out a little cry, a few seconds later so did Ned. With one final thrust, he sheathed himself within her, riding out their mutual release.

When he was able to catch his breath, he leaned down and kissed her neck, still fully sheathed within her. "I wonder if anyone missed us."

"Fuck 'em," she replied, squeezing her inner muscles around him. "Or better yet, fuck me again. This time, in our room."

"As you wish, my love." He captured her lips in a kiss.

* * *

It took them more than a few minutes to redress and break their break toward the elevator, but it wasn't made quick enough.

"Where the hell have you two been?" Her mother asked from behind them as Katie and Ned stepped in front of the elevator.

Katie gave her mother a look while she fixed her dress. "Why? Are we needed?" She asked.

"Yes!" the normally gentle woman exclaimed. "You're supposed to give your speech now!"

"I thought that wasn't 'til after dinner." She sighed, looking at her watch. It was nearly eight. Damn.

"In case you haven't noticed, dinner's been over for thirty minutes, sweetheart!" Melinda exclaimed.

She and Ned exchanged a guilty look. Their little 'quickie' in the closet apparently wasn't that quick of a quickie.

Damnit. Hannah was going to kill her.

"I think I should probably use the bathroom first," she said and motioned to her clearly mussed hair and smeared makeup. "I don't think Hannah would appreciate the 'I just had sex in a coatroom and as going to go upstairs for more' look for her Maid of Honor speech."

Her mom reached into her purse and pulled out a tube of lipstick and mascara wand. "You're right. Here."

"I'll be fast," she promised, before turning to Ned to whisper to him. "And if you could maybe find my underwear…"

The mother behind them put her fists to her temples and took several steadying breaths. "I did not just hear my daughter asked you to go looking for her underwear... I did not."

Ned stepped in. "No, you did not. Let's go, Mel." He whispered in her ear next. "I'll find 'em, babe."

Katie hurried off while Ned walked back into the ballroom with her mother.

"You might want to text Hannah and Jim and let them know to stop sending out the search parties." Melinda tapped his arm.

"Good plan." He pulled his phone out and did just that. His phone immediately buzzed.

**Where the hell are you? Where's Katie? I SWEAR TO GOD NED - Hannah - 7:45 pm**

**Ned, you so owe me - Jim - 7:55 pm**

Ned ignored Hannah's text and texted Jim back. He owed him what?

**It was supposed to me and Mel's sneaky time. You two, suck. - Jim - 8:04pm**

He slipped his phone back into his pocket, ignoring the buzzes that came in after. He'd see Jim soon enough, and he really wasn't that sorry.

Walking up on stage, he slipped behind Hannah and whispered into her ear, "Sorry about running late. Something came up." Beside him, Melinda snickered a little before slipping back off the stage and to her seat.

"Where's Katie?" Hannah asked, her voice panicked.

"In the ladies' room. She had a minor hair emergency." Nothing he said was a lie; it just didn't paint the whole picture.

"Okay," Hannah sighed. "I just want this day to be perfect."

"I'm sure, looking back, it will be." He reassured her.

Even Ned didn't think he could lie convincingly enough to say that he thought the day was perfect.

It wasn't. But at least he hoped his words would make Hannah feel better.

"Yeah, I hope so." Hannah sighed.

Just then, Katie slipped through the door and was up on the stage beside him. Standing up from her chair after a moment of collecting her thoughts for the speech, she clinked a spoon against her glass to get everyone's attention.

When she felt every eye on her, she launched into a story she had promised Hannah she'd never tell about how the first time they saw Brandon in the fourth grade after he moved to town, she called him bubble butt and proceeded to take pictures on her cell phone of his behind.

"If you don't believe what I'm saying, allow me to draw your attention to Exhibit A." On that cue, one of the hotel staff turned on the projector, which showed a picture of a boy's behind in faded jeans standing in what looked to be a playground. "And in case you think that that isn't Brandon Caron, I present Exhibit B." It was a wider shot of the same boy in profile, and it was easily recognizable as the groom when he was younger. "I mean, it could've been worse," she said. "I admit Katie's taste has improved, it's not like she's still crushing on our third-grade teacher, Mr. Cray." A picture of a balding man with a goofy grin popped up. "Or the high school quarterback when we were in middle school, Darius Monroe." This picture was of a red-headed teenager with thousands of freckles, wearing his pads and a football jersey. "I'd say that her taste has improved greatly. In fact, if I wasn't dating Ned and into men, I'd consider hitting that myself."

Throughout her speech, the wedding guests were chuckling and even laughing at the pictures and descriptions. She glanced over at Brandon and Hannah and noted that both bride and groom were facepalming. It was kind of cute, so she pulled out his phone and snapped a quick picture before drawing attention to it. "Aw, look! Isn't that sweet? They're embarrassed together!"

"Katie, if you don't finish up soon, I'm going to kill you," Hannah warned, looking up from her hands.

"Good thing I'm almost done then." To make up for all the embarrassment, she changed gears, speaking about how much Hannah had always loved Brandon and how much she was looking forward to starting a life with him. "So best of luck to the new Mr. and Mrs. Carson," she concluded. "I hope your marriage is as interesting as your relationship was in high school. At least I know I'll never be bored!"

Everyone clapped politely, a few cheering. With the speeches done, Brandon stood so he could lead Hannah out to the dance floor, but not before his mom came up and plopped herself down next to her son and new daughter-in-law. "So, Katie's lovely speech got me thinking. When are you two having a baby?"

"Um…" Brandon looked around, panicked. "We haven't really discussed that yet, Mom. We just got married."

"Kids aren't on my brain," Hannah sighed. "Bu someday."

"I know," His mother sighed. "But I do hope you choose to have children soon because your children shouldn't be deprived of having young grandparents."

"Mom, even if we wait ten years, you'll still be young." Brandon corrected.

"Oh, that's sweet of you to say, dear. But really, you should get on that." His mother said. "You don't want to be old parents, do you?"

"Mom, we've got time." Brandon sighed.

"So everyone says until they find that time just slips away!" His mother exclaimed.

"I think it's time for Han and me to cut the cake," Brandon suddenly said, taking advantage of the reception schedule to make an escape. He stood up and took his new wife's hand.

The cake cutting went according to plan, with Brandon politely feeding his bride a few bites of cake. Hannah was not nearly as delicate. She smashed the cake into Brandon's mouth, smearing buttercream and fondant all over his face.

After the cake came the bouquet toss. Ned saw several women herding Katie and Olivia toward the front while the two members of the wedding party struggled to stay out of the line of fire. Turning her back, Hannah tossed the bouquet right at Katie, who did not want the attention or unwanted marriage questions. For God's sake, she was almost twenty. She had plenty of time.

The bouquet landed at her feet and she looked at it like it was about to bite her.

Swooping in from the left, Mackenzie grabbed the bouquet and shouted, "I got it! I'm next!"

"Oh, thank God," Olivia breathed, the pain pills had worn off about an hour or so ago. "Disaster averted for one more wedding. My official duty's done for the evening. Time to find my post-wedding hookup and get this party started." The woman adjusted her boobs and made a beeline for the bar.

Katie wandered over to where Ned was standing, asking, "Are you sad I didn't catch it? What time is it?"

He chuckled and pressed a kiss to her lips. "I want to marry you when we're both ready if that's what we both want." He looked at his watch. "It's almost 10:30. I think there's still more dancing."

"I like that idea," she smiled and ushered him toward the dancefloor.

The two danced for a while, Katie resting her head on his chest. Out of the corner of his eye, Ned noticed Olivia making out with Hannah's uptight cousin Bristol. The woman's lipstick was smeared all across the other's lips.

"Katie," he nudged her. "Look."

That was when they noticed that Brandon's best man was watching the two women with interest. When they separated for air, the man piped up. "There room for one more?"

Olivia and Bristol exchanged a look. "Absolutely," Liv smirked, holding out one hand. The best man took it, a wide smile crossing his features.

"Oh, God." Katie giggled. "I can't watch this anymore."

The three stumbled out of the ballroom, heading towards the elevators and who knows where. At least Katie hoped they were heading for a room, and that they wouldn't get notification from angry hotel staff about three wedding guests having sex in the water fountain.

The dancing ended and she once again asked, "Can we sneak out too? I'm tired."

He sighed and shook his head. "We've still got the afterparty to attend."

She swore under her breath. "Why did I sign up for this maid of honor roll again?"

"Cause you would've been jealous if Hannah gave the role to anyone else, sweetheart." He chuckled.

She paused and then smiled over at her. "That's too true." She giggled.

* * *

Brunch the next morning was a complete one-eighty from the previous two days. Katie had finally gotten a good night's sleep, thanks to all of the alcohol, and it was as if all of her nervousness and panic had melted away overnight. Hannah was even back to her normal sweet and bubbly personality, going around and offering thanks and apologies while giving out warm hugs to everyone present.

A few people, namely Olivia and her younger brother Aaron, regarded her best friend's sudden shift in behavior with some degree of wariness, although that could have just been the hangovers they both were sporting. Thwarted by the bartenders, Aaron had still managed to get drunk by traveling from table to table, swiping unwatched drinks from people's places. She was pretty sure he'd taken her champagne out of her hand at some point the night before.

When Hannah finally reached Katie, she wrapped her arms around her and whispered in her ear, "Thank you."

She disengaged herself and gave her a look. "For what?"

"For everything, really, thank you. I don't know how you dealt with me the last few weeks," Hannah laughed and squeezed her tightly. "I know it could've have been eay for you to let your dad do that for me yesterday either. I know it wouldn't have been easy for me if the roles were reversed."

"Oh, Han, that's why I'm the selfless one. It equals everything out," she giggled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "And I'm just glad that my dad could be there for you. You know he always is."

Hannah nodded and patted her shoulder as she stood up straighter, clapping her hands to get everyone's attention. "Everyone! Everyone! I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart!" Her voice was filled with emotion and unshed tears. "If it weren't for all of you, yesterday wouldn't have been the wonderful day that it was!"

Ned leaned over and whispered into her ear, "Was she at the same wedding we were?"

She shushed him with a piece of bacon and looked up to listen to her friend talk.

Hannah continued. "Brandon and I were really moved by all the support we received, and we have the most wonderful news!"

"It's noon and we can finally have mimosas?" Olivia gleefully said.

Hannah checked her watch and replied, "Well, yes, but that's not the news!" She paused for effect. "Brandon and I are moving back to Grandview!"

"Does that mean there's a baby?" Brandon's mother said excitedly.

Brandon and Hannah both visibly sighed.

"No, ma," Brandon muttered and went to it back down with Hannah before the woman asked them any more baby questions.

Everybody turned back to their meals and she leaned over to Ned. "So after this weekend, I've decided that if we get married, we're eloping."

"Oh yeah?" He asked.

"Do you think my parents would give us money if we did?" She asked, thinking back to her conversation with Hannah and remembering that her own parents had offered thousands of dollars to elope silently or not marry Brandon at all. "I mean, we'd be taking a lot of stress off them."

He shrugged and murmured, "Don't know. We could ask them." He nodded at her mother and father who were sharing a kiss a few chairs down from them.

She grinned. "Great. I always wanted to be married by a real Elvis impersonator, and what do you think about going to see Lady Gaga? I've always wanted to see her live since A Star is Born"

He returned her smile. "Lady Gaga is fine by me as long as there is an open bar, but the real question... skydiving or drive through?"

She giggled and reached out to plant a kiss onto his lips. "I love you, Ned Banks, so much. Only you would fake plan this with me."

Ned gasped. "Wait, it's fake?" He burst into laughter "Okay, I knew it was fake, but ti as fun to imagine it for a second."


	28. Chapter 28

It was June and nearly Ned's birthday when Katie found herself stretched out on their living room couch. It was too damn hot to be outside and she had the air conditioning on full blast while she tried to watch an episode of the Handmaid's Tale.

It was a nailbiter as usual.

As she watched a flashback scene her heart broke for a character as she was separated from her loved once and forced to become Handmaid for a rich couple, but could feel Ned's gaze boring into the side of her head, even as she tried to concentrate on the episode.

At first, it had been glances, but now he just kept staring at her. What the hell was wrong with him? He was the one who had wanted to watch a damn show to pass some time before they left for their cabin trip with her family.

"What?" she finally asked, turning to glare at him. "Is there something on my face or something?"

He shook his head, his mouth curling into a smile. "No. You just…you look so cute right now."

Incredulous, she frowned and took in her state of dress. She was wearing the baggiest of shirts she could find and shorts because it was too hot to wear anything else.

"Are you serious?" she asked, and he nodded with that same smirk on his face. "I look like a mess!"

"Katie, you're in one of my shirts. Are you kidding? That's hot as hell," he insisted, and she stared at him in disbelief. For some reason, her eyes dipped to his lap, going wide.

"I literally just grabbed this out of drawer because I didn't want to wear a tight shirt. Are you—do you have a hard-on right now?" she asked and he laughed, his face flushing.

"I'm sorry, I don't know, you just look so sexy!" he said defensively, scratching the back of his head, and she blushed, looking back at the TV.

"We're literally watching a dystopian show about people being slaughtered and women being treated like cattle, and that's what you're thinking about?" She said, trying to pay attention to the show, but now all she could think about was him being turned on. "You're a strange one."

Why was this outfit so attractive to him?

Ned moved closer to her suddenly to wrap his arm around her. His lips pressed against her neck. "I think I'm just a little worn out from this show. It's pretty messed up," he murmured, and she flinched at the ticklish puff of air against her ear.

"Ned," she warned, but he slipped off the couch then, settling in between her legs. Her eyes bugged out of her head when he reached up for the waistband of her shorts, tugging them down slowly to ask for permission. "What are you doing?" she asked weakly, even as she lifted her hips so he could pull her shorts and underwear down.

He smiled up at her. "I'm sorry, I just want you so bad right now."

She laughed and shook her head. Her heart began drumming in her chest, and her breath hitched as he yanked her hips to the edge of the couch, quickly burying his face between her thighs. "Oh!" she gasped, her hands reflexively latching on his hair, and she closed her eyes when she felt his tongue move inside her.

She quickly turned the tv off and leaned back into the couch. It was crazy how quickly her body responded to him, arousal already seeping out of her, and he lapped at it when it got to be too much. Each time, he would moan after he tasted her and then dutifully return to where she needed him more, swirling his tongue around until he found a rhythm that made her buck against him.

"Oh—Ned!" she cried, her orgasm claiming her at embarrassing record speed. Her moans echoed through the living room as she tensed and buckled around his tongue, and he groaned, pulling back once she was finished coming.

They stared at each other as she panted, Ned wiping her wetness off the couch with the heel of his hand, then he smiled at her. "Do you want to keep watching TV or…?"

She glowered at him. "I mean, we probably won't get the chance for a couple days at the cabin…" She whispered and shook her head. "You son of a bitch. Take me to the bedroom already."

* * *

Their first day at the cabin with her family was great, but the second day Katie had a crippling migraine. She'd gone around most of the day trying to get past it but didn't want to get out bed after she'd taken a nap. She was too darn comfortable and the sun hurt her eyes.

"I just want to close my eyes forever," she groaned.

Ned sat beside her, curling his arms around her. "I wish there was something I could do to help," he pressed his lips to her shoulder. "Are you sure that you don't at least want to come down for the fire? The sun will be set by then."

"I don't know," she sighed. "I was gonna try and listen to an audiobook and see if that helps." She knew how roudy her siblings would get when they were waiting to make s'mores. That would not help with her migraine.

But Ned pointed out that she had bailed on the fire last night (but for very different circumstances) and she can't possibly want to spend yet another evening in the stuffy, cramped cabin.

"I'll make sure to tell everyone that they should try and not yell or anything. They're your family, Katie, we should go spend some time with them after we bailed to fool around last night. Plus there'll be s'mores," he added, and she folded.

He was right. They had bailed to get some alone time.

And it's not like there's a lot to do in a cabin, that's an hour from almost any stores or other towns. Plus the fresh air would probably be good for her.

"Yeah, okay." She said softly, turning around to lay on her back. "You have a point."

"Thank you," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her lightly. "Plus your dad said he wouldn't let me have a steak tonight if I didn't get you to come down."

She laughed out loud at that. Of course, her father was so funny like that. It was as though her migraine had disappeared just by him taking her mind off it.

"Well, since we're going down for dinner too… why don't we enjoy a little time to ourselves." She smiled, pressing their lips together again.

By the time Katie and Ned stopped kissing, her father had started a small fire in the pit behind the cabin, and they drug the chairs to circle it while her dad brought plates of food to people. Her mother had got the supplies for the s'mores set up while they ate, and Katie sat on Ned's lap while they ate.

After the food and s'mores were made and Katie's younger siblings went to bed, her father brought cards out and convinced them to play this game where you put cards in a pile in order and you have to trick people or something.

Katie wasn't clear on the rules. She was focused on making herself another s'more when she was asked to play, and she nodded distractedly at her friend.

It's a decision she regretted.

"You are worse than I am at this game," Ned said, chuckling.

It's the truth; the only one who's as worse as her was Ned. Katie glared at him while she gathered up the cards in the center; she's got about half in her hand now.

"Katie's never been a good liar," Her dad said, taking a drink of his beer. "Can't fault her for that!" He winked at her, who slumped in her seat.

Ned put down two sevens instead of a face card.

"Bullshit, Ned!" Her mom trilled, delighted.

He tossed up his hands, and Melinda clinked her wine glass with Jim's beer.

"We should have you team up with Katie," Her dad said. "It'd be the world's worst team. Ever. In the world." He smirked, tossing his last card onto the rickety, lopsided wooden table. "One ace. I win."

Everyone groaned. It's his third win in a row.

"Why don't you pair up?" Her mom suggested, and he glanced at her.

She agreed under the assumption that she wouldn't really have to play; she'd zone off, and Ned would play for her. But she started to get into it when she realized that her dad lied, and she called him on it, and she realized, too, that it threw the group off when she whispered with Ned about their cards.

Five minutes in, Ned slammed their last two cards onto the table. "Suck it!"

"Two sixes," she said, and Ned crowed in triumph as he wrapped his arm around her while her dad sighed haughtily at them.

* * *

Ned heard about some party down the beach the next night and they ran off before anyone could ask them too many questions.

They had been walking a trail for nearly twenty minutes when Katie finally sighed. "Do you know where we're going?" She asked, squeezing his hand as he pulled her further into the woods.

"For the last time, yes," he chuckled. "We're almost there."

"And you want to try and get back to the cabin after we've been drinking on this trail?" She asked.

"That's why we brought our phones," he said. "We can always call your parents." She nodded and continued walking. He had a point. "It'll be worth it. I heard there's beer pong, you're party favorite game."

She rolled her eyes. It was not her favorite, but she was pretty good most of the time.

"Yeah, okay. It better be fun or I'm not giving you your birthday deal this year," she said, not completely serious.

"You can't break a birthday deal," he said, stopping dead in his tracks.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll still wear that Princess Leia outfit, you nerd." She went to walk past him, but he pulled her back toward him. "What?"

"Take that back," he said.

"Take what back?" She asked, an eyebrow raised.

"That I'm a nerd," he sighed as she shook her head.

"You're a total nerd, Ned Banks, and that's one of the reasons why I love you." She whispered, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "Don't worry, no one will ever know about your birthday deal. Just me."

"Good, because I'd never hear the end of it from your dad or Aaron." He said, leading her through the wood a little bit more before they could begin to hear music and see the glow of a bonfire in the distance. "See, told you! We're almost there."

* * *

Give Katie an empty notebook and she could fill it in a weekend if she tried, and usually, she was the champ at beer bong, but tonight she can't manage to bounce one stupid ball into one stupid cup. For the umpteenth time, some guy named Hunter slapped her cup off the table; she cursed at him before she grabbed another from the center, chugging it while everyone cheers her on.

She slammed it down on the table, and took aim again. But she could get the ball in.

"Come on, babe," Ned cheered. "Almost got it!"

A girl named Serena had her ball in on her first try, and she tossed it easily to Hunter, who got it in on his first try too, and he slapped Katie's cup away from her.

"I'm going to rip your face off," she said, which makes him laugh. She grabbed his ball from him before he can hand it to Ned, and she tossed it.

Down the beach. Far, far away. That'll buy her some time, and she started to chug another cup.

"Katie!" Ned said, laughing. "You can't do that!"

"I don't remember that in the rules!" she said, slamming her new, empty cup down. Her boyfriend thumped her on the back in encouragement while she tried to bounce the ball in, and Hunter chased his ball down the beach. When she got the stupid ball in at last, the group cheered for her. She breathed out in relief, shoving her ball at Ned. "You're turn."

Naturally, it took about ten seconds for another ball to be shoved into her hand. Hunter's back with the second one, too, and he got it into his cup in an instant, slapping her cup away from her. She's forced to down another drink from the middle, chugging while everybody cheers. After Hunter was Gunther, but he's almost as bad at this as she was tonight, and he's slow to get it in his cup.

She got hers in first, and she pumped her fist in victory, stumbling a moment later. Ned grabbed her elbow to steady her.

She grinned at him in gratitude. "Clearly, I'm great at this game," she said.

He laughed, kissing her. "Clearly," he said, taking his turn and her toes curled in her sneakers at his smile he gave her when he made it in.

* * *

On their walk back, Ned showed her a joint that someone had given him. Katie had never tried that stuff besides the one time she'd accidently ate the brownies Brandon had made at the apartment last year.

She agreed on a whim, taking the joint that Ned had lit and taken a drag from. It couldn't be that bad if he was going to, right? He was the cop in this situation.

Ned had obviously tried it before and explained how she was supposed to breathe it in. He smiled at her while smoke poured from his nose, and Katie tried to do what he said. It's acidic in her throat, but it's not as bad as she thought it would be, and she passed it back to him as she leaned against a tree.

"We should do this before we get back to the cabin," she said, as he gave it back to her.

They passed it back and forth for a while, and then Ned put it out and back into his pocket as they walked back toward the cabin. Katie doesn't feel a thing. Until she does.

Like bubbles beneath her skin, like she's the air, and the air's her. Ned laughed when she tried to explain the feeling to him, but she doesn't hear what he said back to her.

"Look at the fire," she said, coming out from the woods and seeing her parents cabin. They must've gone in a little bit ago because it was starting to die down and the s'mores stuff was put away. She sat down a few feet back from it. "It's so beautiful."

"I think you've looked at it enough for us both," he replied.

She turns her head to look at him. He smiles at her, and she can't help but push her hand into his hair. "It's so soft," she said, twisting her fingers in the curls. "But they aren't really curls," she says. "More like waves." She combed her fingers through his hair, and his eyes were bright when she smiled at him. She laid her head on his chest, petting his hair absently. She'd always liked it. "Is there food out here?" she asked.

"We have to go in for that," he said. "And your parents are watching a movie on the couch. You ready for that?"

She blinked owlishly at him. "I need food. They can't deny their favorite child food."

"Favorite child?" He asked.

"We all know it," she shrugged and sat up slowly, biting her lip as she saw her parents laying on the couch together.

Was she ready to go in there?

"You're begin really honest with this stuff," he laughed out loud. "Anything you want to tell me?"

"You're super pretty and really good in bed, like so good," she smiled. "And I love you. Like a lot. More than I've ever loved someone before, you know?"

He chuckled and leaned up on his elbow. "You're too kind, and I love you too," he said.

"C'mon. I need you to come with me," she said, dragging him up to his feet and toward the cabin. "You can cover for me."

As they slid the sliding door, her gaze fell to the Doritos on the counter, in a shiny red bag that sat just in her reach. "Fuck yes!" she said, and she fumbled with the bag until Ned shushed her and opened it for her. She pat his arm in thanks, and she agreed to trade him two chips for an Oreo.

The light suddenly turned on and she stuffed chips in her mouth so she wouldn't be the one that would have to talk.

"Katie, Katie, it's your dad. We're fucked," Ned said, giggling like a school kid as he took her hand. Her eyes were wide, and she was scared as hell, but she continued to eat to Doritos like nothing happened.

"Hey, you two have fun?" Her dad came in a second later, taking a chip from the open bag. "I was worried you'd lose your way on the way back." When neither of them really answered, he chuckled. "What's wrong with you? Cat's got your tongue?"

She nudged her boyfriend to answer, but he just sort of waved awkwardly instead.

"Are you two high?" Melinda asked, coming in with an empty bowl that must've had popcorn.

Katie burst into laughter and slapped Ned. "I thought you were covering for us!"

"I lost all words when it was your dad," he shrugged, trying to grab a Dorito.

"No chips for traitors," she said, slipping away from him.

Katie doesn't remember much after that, or really much in general. But as soon as her dad saw her the next day, he shouted to her from where he stood on the boat dock. "Hey! No chips for traitors!" He grinned, but she doesn't have the chance to glare back at him before Melinda pushed him into the lake.

Katie choked on a laugh, and her mother waved cheerfully at her.

She waved back, and cupped her hands to her mouth. "Thank you!"

Melinda gave her two thumbs up.


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: There's no way Katie and Ned had the smoothest relationship before marriage... here's a possible bump in the road :) Enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

Two months went by and things had fallen into a routine. Ned worked early mornings for patrol, until about six most days. While Katie worked as an assistant at Professor Payne's office and helped out at her mom's store whenever she could.

Things were going great. Student teaching was starting soon for Katie and she couldn't wait to see what this year would bring into her life with Ned. Those were words she never thought would be a reality for her. Being with Ned was always a far fetched dream for her and now she was making dinner for him.

"Honey, I'm home," Ned said as he walked through their apartment door, it looked like he grinned wider as he saw her. "God, I love saying that."

"You're such a dork," she laughed and wiped her hands off quickly, meeting him with a kiss.

"This smells great, babe." He said, wrapping his arms around her waist. He pressed his lips to the crook of her neck. "What is it?"

"No peeking," she laughed, pushing him toward the hallway. "You go get out of uniform and into comfy clothes. Dinner is a surprise and almost done."

Katie was just like her mother, always wanting her dinners to be a surprise. She could cook mean chicken dumplings and her chili was phenomenal. She also could make these little cookies that were bite-sized pieces of heaven, but she always kept whatever she was making that night a secret until it was on the table for him to see.

Tonight was a cheesy broccoli soup recipe she'd found online. It had smelled so good at first and she couldn't wait to taste it again, but then it was like something in her stomach churned and she just couldn't smell it again.

"Nevermind. Can you stir this?" She asked and handed him the ladle before running past him and into the bathroom. "It's going to make me sick."

She closed the door from the floor of the bathroom, her guts spilling into the toilet. She almost wished she had locked it because she did not want Ned to see her like this. Katie grasped the porcelain, the sick taste in her mouth making it worse than the cramps in her stomach.

Her stomach had been churning since this morning, and even though she had managed to keep everything down since then, she knew that she was going to throw up again sooner or later. She would probably throw up as soon as she looked back at their dinner.

"You okay?" Ned asked from outside the door. He knocked lightly before the door opened a little. "Can I come in?"

She took a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes as she sat before the toilet. She felt her stomach churn in the familiar get to the nearest toilet sort of way. She breathed and then the contents of her stomach spilled out of her mouth again.

Ned knocked again as he slightly came inside because she didn't answer, but could hear her well enough to sit down behind her, holding back her hair and rubbing his hand on her back. After she was sure she was done, she sat back and wiped her hand across her mouth.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, leaning back into him. "I didn't want you to see me like this."

Ned moved and grabbed a washcloth from under the sit, wetting it before he kneeled and brought it to her face. "Don't apologize. I'm sorry you feel so rotten." He whispered and she touched his hands, taking it from him. He went and got her a glass of water, sitting back on the floor. "How are you feeling now?"

"You tried the soup didn't you?" She asked as she wiped her chin before spying a yellow drop on his chin.

"Maybe," he grinned, handing her the water before he looked at her. "It was delicious."

"I'm glad someone can eat it," she whispered before turning back to the toilet.

* * *

After Ned left for his morning patrol shift the next morning, Katie facetimed her best friend Hannah immediately.

"Hey, Han, it's me. I really need to talk." She sighed, placing her phone on her bed after she finally answered. She stepped back, grabbing her jeans.

"Hey, Katie." Katie pulled on her jeans, grabbing her sweater. "That's a cute outfit."

"Thanks," she sighed, fixing her hair as she grabbed her phone. "I need to tell you something that needs to stay a secret, and not a secret that you can tell my mom."

"Are you okay?" Hannah asked, concerned. "What's up?"

Katie smiled, trying to force her blue jeans to button as she sat on the bed. They were a little tight, but they fit. "Everything's fine. You don't need to worry. I just have a theory and need it to be between us only. Not even Brando can know." She sighed, fixing her hair.

"Okay," Hannah stared at her, wanting answers. "Continue."

"I think I'm pregnant." She sighed, closing her eyes to avoid whatever facial expression Hannah made.

"I thought I heard a struggle with those jeans and I noticed the sports bra," Hannah sighed. "Did you get a test?"

"I am about to go get one right now," she said immediately grabbing her keys from her nightstand. "What if I am?"

"Then you'll manage. You always do. Just let me know how everything goes, okay?" Hannah smiled, trying to be positive. "I'm here for you, one hundred percent."

"Of course," she said, standing up and walking out of her bedroom. "We'll talk tonight. Love you."

"Love you too," Hannah blew a kiss and her phone screen went dark and she tucked it in her back pocket.

She just kept thinking about how she could be pregnant. She did not want to be pregnant right now.

* * *

Katie could easily admit that she was surprised at the thought that crossed her mind when she walked down the aisle in the drug store that men avoided like the plague. She didn't walk into the store thinking it, but she definitely started thinking it when she stopped in front of a shelf she'd never looked at seriously before.

**PREGNANCY TESTS**

She didn't know why her hand when to her stomach and a smile crossed her lips, but it did on both accounts.

Yes, she was a sentimental woman and she loved children, but the thought of trying to pick out a test or two that would change her life, one way or another, made her a little emotional. She wondered how many women had felt like that in this exact place

She wondered if Hannah had during their freshman year when Hannah had thought she might be pregnant. If her mother had felt as nervous as she did when she found out about her, and then she thought about how many men were shooed from their homes when their emotional significant other thought she was pregnant and made him come to get it.

Her smile grew at the mental image of her father standing here trying to do that or Ned. She laughed and let the scene play out in her mind for a moment just because she thought it was funny, but the line of thought didn't last long. She was on a tight deadline and needed to get home before anyone saw her and asked questions. Or told her mother. The second option was almost proved to be worse.

Katie quickly turned and headed down an aisle, stopping at the tampons. When she remembered she had a full, unopened box at home, she withdrew the hand that was reaching for her usual brand. When she did that, her mind started to count days and weeks those tampons sat in that unopened box. She turned back to the other side of the aisle where the previous objects of her attention sat in neat little rows.

Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she slowly crept back to the shelves of pregnancy tests as she did the math again and again. She realized that if she was still counting after so many times that she should probably just pick one up and take it. Two even. Just to be safe and if she was wrong, it was only ten dollars.

She stared a moment longer, not knowing if she was actually ready to pick the object up off the shelf and took a couple of deep breaths.

It wasn't as if she didn't want a family with Ned. She did, one day, but they were only just getting starting in life. They had just moved in together. A baby was not even a thought yet. Hell, a wedding was supposed to come first, but this was possibly a baby and she knew they would both have adjusted as necessary because it would be their baby.

She wasn't sure if she felt guilty for wondering if now was the right time for one. Every woman thought that, didn't they? They hemmed and hawed and thought of themselves, their career, their significant other, right? She knew couldn't be alone in this line of thinking.

Her hand moved back to her stomach as she stared at the plethora of tests in front of her. She wondered if there was one better than the other. The one her hand hovered over had caught her eye from the start and its name was very encouraging for someone who wasn't positive what the result was going to be once the test was taken. And she needed to know for sure.

She couldn't handle it if she went home, took the tests and didn't have a definitive answer. Maybe it would be smarter for her to just go home and make an appointment with her gynecologist. Sure, she'd only been there four months ago, but this was something of an emergency. Right?

Did she really want to wait any longer to find out if she and Ned were going to have a baby?

Her decision was made when she grabbed two boxes and put it in her basket, nonchalantly adding some deodorant for Ned and some razors for her before heading up to the checkout. She grabbed Ned a Snickers and herself a Reese's respectively and tried really hard not to blush when the teenager behind the counter looked from Katie to the pregnancy test and back at her again.

She paid and got out quickly, thanking goodness that she and Ned's apartment wasn't too far away from the CVS she'd gone to. When she entered their apartment, she wished Ned was there and that she'd told him at dinner like she'd wanted to.

Instead, she walked to the bathroom alone, unzipping her jeans and opened one box before she sat on the toilet. She did as the instructions told her to and went to wash her hands. She placed a couple of tissues down and then laid out the two tests. She set the timer on her cell phone and leaned back against the wall with her Reese's in hand.

It felt like the longest two minutes of her life.

She had too much time to think. She was scared and excited and picturing her boyfriend holding a baby and hearing endless screams at three in the morning and she could feel herself clenching her fists because she didn't know which emotions were okay and which made her a bad potential mother. She did not want to be a bad mother.

When her phone beeped, she didn't look at the tests right away like she'd planned too. Instead, she turned to the wall and calmed herself. She briefly wondered if everything would be okay, though.

Were she and Ned ready for the responsibility that came with having a child? Was she ready to possibly grow three times her normal size? Was she ready to have strange cravings, intense mood swings, cramps in her legs and a complete lack of control of her bodily functions?

Just as important as that, was Ned ready? Was he ready for her to call him crying in the middle of the night because she couldn't see her toes? Was he ready for two am food runs because she was craving something ridiculous that they didn't have at home? Was he ready for even less sleep that he got now?

She decided that even if they weren't ready, they would be able to get ready. They would have nine months, give or take, to get ready.

"Okay. Time to look." She breathed, rubbing her face before she turned. Her eyes were still closed. "Katie, go look and then call your mother because she always knows what to do. You know you shouldn't have kept this from her."

She opened her eyes leaned over them.

Both tests said the same thing, both had crystal clear results. Two solid pink lines. That meant she was pregnant. She grabbed the next box and did the next two just as she did the others, reaching for her phone dialing her mother's number as they started to show their results.

"Hello?" Melinda whispered.

"Mom, hi. Can you come over like now?" She said quickly, her hand shaking as she looked at the next two tests.

"Katie… is this urgent?" Melinda asked.

"Kind of," she whispered, biting her lip. She needed to just rip the bandaid off. "Mom, I think I'm pregnant." She said, looking at the two pink lines on the test she had in her hand as she felt tears roll down her cheeks. She was starting to give into the emotional breakdown that was coming as her breathing became more labored. "I'm freaking out and I need you."

"I'm walking out of the store now. I'm on my way," Melinda replied and hung up.

Her heart was pounding and her head was spinning. She had no idea what the rest of her was doing because the last few moments had not gone as she had expected. When she got up this morning, she'd expected a day of relaxing. A trip to the pharmacy, a late night pizza delivery and probably sex with Ned when he got home from his patrol in the wee hours of the morning. As usual.

That last one was the whole reason she was in this damn mess.

She didn't expect to bring home a pregnancy test, take it and get results like this. It was supposed to be an easy, drama free day.


	30. Chapter 30

Melinda used her spare key that Katie had given her in case of an emergency and walked right to the bathroom. Katie was on the floor, her legs no longer held her up, not in mess like this.

"How many tests did you buy?" Melinda asked, helping her daughter up onto her feet. "Does Ned know? Where is he?"

"Four. They are in the sink," she replied, blinking at her. "Did you like sprint across the square?"

"Doesn't matter," Melinda sighed, hugging her. "Did you take them all?"

"Yeah, I took them all." She muttered, pulling back and walking toward the sink. "They're all positive and no, Ned doesn't know. I didn't want to tell him before I knew for sure. He went to work and that's when I went and got the tests."

"Okay, umm..." Melinda muttered and grabbed her daughter's hand, looking at the test. "C'mon. I'll take you to someone. We'll know for sure."

She followed her mother without a word and quickly locked the front door behind her.

"Where are you taking me? It better not be dad who's doing this." She said, following her down the stairs and out the front door of the apartment complex.

"It's not dad," Melinda answered and ran to the driver's side of her car, getting in. "But your dad will find out sooner or later if you are pregnant, Katherine."

Katie got inside the car and slid down in the seat as her mother called her by her full first name. That was never good. "I know," she got into the jeep and glanced out the window. "Don't remind me."

* * *

The doctor's office was cold and clammy and white and sterile and everything that Katie hated. It wasn't that she wasn't used to the awkwardness of being at the doctor's office. She had grown up with the environment. Her dad was the chief of the hospital for God's sake, but when the nurse called her name, Katie almost jumped out of her seat.

Melinda had to bite back a laugh and wrapped her arm around her. "C'mon babe, you're fine. Deep breaths," her mother said softly.

The room was blue, with clouds all over the walls. It was almost calming enough for Katie to try and comfortably sit on the table.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Chinn. I'll be taking care of you today." A woman said and she looked over uneasily at her mother. After the awkward handshakes were over, the doctor got settled on the doctors' stool and looked at her chat. "So Katie, you think you're pregnant? Did you take an at home pregnancy test?"

"I took four. They were all positive." She explained, biting her lip. "I just wanted to know for sure."

"I see. So, why do you think you're pregnant?" The doctor asked.

"Just a feeling," she replied. "I haven't felt like myself lately and can't keep anything down."

"When was the date of your last period?" The doctor questioned.

"Can't remember. Late July, I think." She replied, biting her tongue.

"Katherine Ann!" Her mother gawked at her. "It's almost September, you know."

Dr. Chinn doesn't seem phased, though. "Well, I guess the only way we can tell immediately is if we have a look. Lie back and lift up your shirt for me."

She laid back and did as she was asked before looking at her mother. She could see that her mother hated seeing her in so must discomfort. The only thing she knew to do was to squeeze her hand and press a reassuring kiss to her forehead.

"Everything is gonna be okay," her mother reassured her, smiling. "No matter the outcome."

"You think so?" She asked, sighing at the gel squirted onto her stomach and the wand pressed into it, beginning to move around. "I'm so scared mom. I'm not ready for this."

"Even the most prepared parents aren't ready for when their baby comes," her mother said, squeezing her hand. "If you're pregnant, Katie, there's nothing you can do to change that."

She nodded slowly and sighed. She knew that better than anyone. Dr. Chinn moved the wand over her stomach and muttered to herself as she swiveled it around.

"What do you see?" She asked, turning to look at the monitor.

"Well, Katie, you aren't pregnant." Dr. Chinn said pointing to the screen. "See? No baby. I can't be sure as to why the tests came back positive, but I would like to run some more tests."

"Okay," she nodded, finally letting herself breathe as she sat up. "What do you need from me?"

"Just two cheek swabs and little vile of blood. Shouldn't take long," Dr. Chinn said grabbing two long swabs and motioning for her to open her mouth window. "Open," the doctor swabbed each cheek and put them in test tubes. The doctor set them on the counter and then turned around to grab a needle and vile to screw onto the end. "Arm."

Katie gulped at the sight of the needle. They had never been her friend or something she liked. She hated shots, even if she needed them. She reluctantly set out her right arm and turned away before there was a slight prick, a few moments later there was a band-aid attached to her arm. "It was nice to see you, Katie. You were just a little girl the last time I saw you... and Melinda, how's that adorable Lana doing?"

"She's doing great and gaining weight nicely," Melinda smiled, hugging the woman. "Thank you for doing this on such short notice and keeping it on the down low."

"Anything for one of my favorite patients," Dr. Chinn smiled and left. "It was nice to see you, even in these circumstances."

Katie laid back down and sighed, wiping tears from her eyes. "What am I supposed to tell Ned?" She muttered. "I can't just keep this a secret."

"You'll know what to do. You always do the right thing, Katie," Melinda held out her hand for her daughter, but Katie hopped off the table and hugged her mother instead. "Oh, honey... it's okay." She sobbed into her shoulder while her mother's hands rubbed her back and whispered how much she loved her. It was always what she needed. Most of the time, at least. "Okay, enough sobbing for today. Let's go have some lunch."

Melinda pinched her daughter's cheek. "Okay," she smiled and wiped away her tears, adjusting her shirt.

* * *

Ned was on a mission to figure out what was going on with his girlfriend. Not only had she not been feeling well the last few days, but after his mother called him and told him she thought Katie might be pregnant he'd convinced his commanding officer to let him go early.

He ran up all four flights of stairs and down the hallway to his door, unlocking it quickly. But instead of rushing down the hallway as he'd planned, he took his jacket and shoes off before he calmly walked into their shared bedroom.

There was his girlfriend, Katie, sitting in bed with her glasses on and book in front of her face. Her hair was bedridden from the last few hours of lounging, the chocolate brown strands falling in front of her eyes when she looked down and he didn't remember counting that many shades in it before. She caught his gaze and that warm shade of light brown turned to honey when the light hit it.

And he's melting, melting in the of spring, melting in her eyes. "Hey, you." He whispered, his mind wandering back to what his mother had told him she suspected and he glanced down at the rumble of blankets that were above what he presumed was her stomach. Was she pregnant?

"You're home early. Have a good day?" She asked, smiling at him as he walked across the room and toward the bed.

"Better now that I'm with you," he replied and smiled at her, lying down on the bed with her. She curled into him, soft and warm from being under the blankets. "It was a long shift, so I'm glad I got out the hour earlier."

She met his eyes with the brown of her eyes and there are those damn words again, words he couldn't form, words that he didn't even know, words that destroy his heart, choke his throat. Her fingers curled around his arm, pressing into the fabric of his jacket, her head resting on his shoulder. She was so small, such an insignificant part of this gigantic universe and yet, she was the most important part of his life.

"Oh yeah?" She smiled up at him, rubbing his sides. "Catch any bad guys?"

"A few," he joked but noticed the sorrow hidden in her voice. "What's the matter? I've been worried about you… since you've been sick and withdrawn lately." He muttered, pulling back. He rubbed her cheek. "I wish you would've been the one to tell me, but I already know that you're pregnant."

"I'm not pregnant, Ned." She mumbled, moving back to lay back on her pillow. "Who told you?"

His lips parted as he inhaled deeply, his brow furrowing. "My mom only told me that she heard from your mom that you might be pregnant. It was a hunch."

A tear rolled down her cheek, slowly, through a path of freckles. "Well, today was long, but one thing I know for sure is that I'm not pregnant. I thought I might've been for a little while." She angrily wiped the tears away as he wound his hand around her waist and pulled her close, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Katie, I wish I could've been there for you," he whispered. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I only started thinking about it today," she replied, breathing softly as he pulled back to look at her. "I didn't want to worry you because you had to work."

He reached between their bodies and found one of her hands, lacing his fingers with hers and she squeezed it tight. He hated that she had to do this alone, even if she wasn't pregnant. "I want you to worry me about this stuff. That's what I'm here for." He sighed and slowly, raised his other hand cup her cheek, leaning close to kiss her gently.

He felt her hands glide over his shoulder, pulling him close to her and deepening the kiss. "You can't repeat the past." She replied against his lips, wrapping her arm around his neck as she kissed him another time. They fell deeper into the cushioned bed, the sheets wrapping around them like close friends.

Only she would quote Fitzgerald to him in a moment like this.

"I love when you quote literature to me," he grinned, licking her lips as she grinned back at him.

"I know," she laughed and tucked her head into his shoulder. "Will you go get me the ice cream?"

"Of course," he said, leaning in for another kiss. "Want the wine we have too?"

"Yes, please." She smiled and relaxed into the bed as he got up.

* * *

The next day was Ned's day off and it was wrapped up in his head. He could've been a dad and they could've had a child together if Katie had been pregnant.

He glanced over at the woman who was sleeping next to him, his girlfriend, and all he could think about was how much he loved her. And how nothing would have changed if she was pregnant. He'd still love her just as much, if not more.

He knew right then that he wanted to marry this girl. He loved Katie more than he'd ever loved anyone in his whole life. He leaned over to press a kiss to her face, against her forehead.

She stirred, just slightly, as her eyes slowly opened. "Hey," she whispered, yawning.

"Hi," he whispered. "Did you sleep well?"

She nodded, rubbing her eyes. "Yeah." She stretched slightly before curling into him, pressing her lips against his throat. "But I'd rather just lay in bed all day with you anyway."

He chuckled, rubbing his hand up and down her back. "I like that idea, considering I'm off."

She nodded slowly, pressing another kiss to his chest. "I know that all this stuff just happened… but do we have any condoms?"

He reached down and over, rummaging through his side drawer. He grabbed a box, pulling it out. "I'm always prepared." He smiled, leaning down to kiss her as she took them out of his hand giggling.

"That's one reason why I love you," she said, their kiss muffling her voice from any more conversation after that.

* * *

"Are you sure, honey?" Her mother sat at her kitchen table, sipping her coffee that Katie had made for them when her mom came over to chat about a new ghost that had been involved in their lives.

"I'm sure that I can manage to go to Payne's office today. He gave me some papers to grade that I need to bring in anyway." Katie insisted as she stood up from her seat. "I've been lounging around here for the last two hours."

Melinda nodded, "Just remember to give yourself time and if you need help with anything, just call me."

"I think I've called you enough the last few days, I should be fine. Isn't today dad's day off?" She watched as her mom stood up, finishing her coffee.

Together, the two walked into the kitchen and they put their cups in the sink.

"Your dad is playing some pick-up basketball game with your brother," Melinda said, shrugging. "I'm filling my time with errands until then."

She nodded, slowly understanding her mother's ways a little more. "So you want to come?"

"Yes, go get ready." Melinda crossed the hall toward the master bedroom door and opened it for her. Her mother peeked in and then beckoned her over. "You didn't tell me Ned was home."

Katie went to the open doorway and found Ned asleep on the bed while still dressed in his uniform. "Yeah, he got home just before you knocked on the door." Her mouth rose in a smile and she slid past her mom and went to Ned.

Taking a blanket from the end of the bed, she covered him and knelt down before his sleeping form. Ned always looked so calm when he slept. Her hand reached out to brush his hair back and he sighed, his lips turning upward.

She leaned forward and gently placed a kiss on his lips. They were slightly chapped but tasted of the coffee he'd had when he'd come home this morning. He always drank coffee even when he was literally about to go to sleep; it was one of the small things she knew about him and she stored it all inside her.

Standing up, she turned to see her mother watching her with a bemused expression. She walked to the closet and switched her pajama pants to jeans and put on a bra. That should suffice enough to go to Payne's office.

She went to the bathroom next and brushed her hair quickly. Katie applied some mascara and lip gloss before her mom finally sighed, "You ready yet?"

She laughed and walked out with her. "Yes, let's go, mama."

* * *

After visiting Payne together, the mother and daughter walked out onto the street and to where Melinda's car was parked down the block. Melinda turned to Katie and held out her arms to her.

She rushed into them quickly, almost as though they would close before she got there. "Thank you for coming with. I miss doing ghostly things with you and not on my own like I was in the city."

"I know, it's so great that you're back." Her mother said as they embraced and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Katie nodded and kissed her cheek. "I know. I don't remember the last time I've had to ask Ned to secretly look up an address for me."

"Well, I'll drop you off to do that because I have to run to the shop and price quote something for Delia before your dad gets home." Melinda turned to walk to her side of the car.

"Mom?" Katie got in the car and looked down for a moment, trying to think of the right words. She finally decided that there wasn't really a good way to ask this particular question, "How do you know for sure that you really love someone?"

Her mother searched her face, tucking a tendril of hair behind Katie's ear before meeting her eyes again. "You already know, Katie."

"What?" Her mother had begun to drive towards her apartment. "Mom—"

Melinda didn't answer her until she pulled off the street outside her and Ned's apartment. "Katie," her mother put the car in park. "I have watched you puppy dog love Ned since you were twelve, and I watched Ned fall in love with you too." Sighing, she looked over at her mother and nodded. "And I know as much as you do how much your feelings for him have grown in just the way that you talk about him. This scare was a lot for both of you, but I think it's only going to move you closer to him."

She nodded slowly and leaned across the car to hug her before she got out. "Thank you, mom." She went back into the house and found Ned sitting up on the couch. Closing the door behind her, she gave him a smile. Walking over, she sat next to him and tucked her feet under her. "Hey, you're up."

"Did you cover me with that blanket?" He asked her. "Where'd you go?"

She nodded. "I did, and I just had to run to Payne's with mom for a minute." She leaned her head on his shoulder. "There's something I want to talk to you about."

"Just another one of your ghostly errands," he said. "What's up?"

"Get used to it, babe," she grinned and squeezed his hand. "This whole baby scare really made me think, you know? My mom told me that she thinks it's going to push us closer."

"I believe that too. I've never felt more secure in how utterly in love I am with you." He reached over to pull her close to him and she rested the back of her head against his chest, nestling herself in-between his stretched out legs.

"Smooth line, no wonder I almost ended up pregnant." She rubbed her stomach, feeling his chuckling against her body. She turned her head to look up at him. "My mom told me that she and my dad are behind us one hundred percent."

"So you and your Mom had a good talk?" He asked, smiling at her.

"We got almost everything sorted out," she told him. "She gave me some advice. We talked ghost stuff and ran to Payne's, then we talked about you."

"I'm happy then." he kissed her gently and when he pulled away, she could see the different flecks of green in his eyes in the soft light of the living room. "Can I say something?"

"Anything," she said contently.

"Okay," he said and she watched him get nervous about what he was going to say. Slowly, she took her hands into his and Ned met her eyes as she ran a hand through his hair in reassurance. She wanted him to know that he could say anything he wanted to her and trust her to keep it to herself. "When I thought you were pregnant," he said, smiling at her as he took hold of her hand. "I didn't panic until my mom did on the end of the phone. She started listing all these terrible outcomes that usually ended with your mother not ever talking to her again. Then I just kind of hung up and ran over here without a second thought. I think the reason i didn't panic was because I knew we'd be okay."

Katie nodded, her mouth suddenly dry as she stared down at him. She had wanted to laugh at the part about his mom, but hadn't wanted to ruin the mood. Delia always over thought everything, and always sought to put her opinion out.

Then again, her mother usually did too, but Melinda was right. She already knew. She wanted to marry him. She loved him.

"Ned?" She asked.

He smiled up at her, his skin glowing and his cheeks warm. "Yeah?"

Katie kissed him softly, then pulled away so their eyes could meet again. "I love you."

"I love you too," he smiled.

* * *

Later that day, Ned had gone to the jeweler and looked at engagement rings. He had looked at about twelve different once before he'd given up. He definitely needed to talk to someone first.

He knew he couldn't talk to his mom without Delia projecting her fears onto him and possibly scaring him out of it, but didn't want there to be any chance of someone in Katie's family accidentally telling her his plans. So he found himself talking on the next person he'd trusted this much, hs commanding officer, Captain Josh LeTrai.

Ned knocked on the door lightly just before the end of his shift. "Hey, Capt. there's something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Is it involving one of your cases?" LeTrai asked as he came in.

"No, sir. It's personal," he sat in the chair. "I didn't know who else to talk to about this. I didn't want Katie to possibly find out."

"What don't you want Katie to find out about?" LeTrai leaned back into his seat.

"I want to marry her, so badly." He felt himself break into a grin. "But I don't know what ring to get. She likes the older rings, but I don't know if I should involve her mom."

"So, you're kind of spiralling then?" Josh came from around his desk.

"A little," he sighed. "I know I should talk to her dad, but he said he was busy with Katie's brother."

"My advice would be to go with the ring you think Katie would want to wear for the rest of her life," Josh said, putting his arm around him. "From what you've told me I think you should go to her mom. She would know Katie's style and have the ring she'd want."

Ned nodded. "I don't know how I'm gonna ask her. Like, do I just get on one knee and ask her?" He asked.

LeTrai laughed and patted his shoulder. "You're overthinking it. You love Katie and she loves you, but you can't just ask right off." He grabbed a small box off his desk that held paperclips in it. "It has to be romantic. Here—watch."

Kneeling before him, LeTrai took his hand. "From the moment I met you, I knew there was something special about you and I was right. You're beautiful, smart and you're the strongest woman I know. I'm lucky just to be holding your hand. I hope that you'll give me the honor of spending the rest of my life with you—will you marry me?"

Ned smiled and nodded. "I liked that."

Then there was a knock on the door and Jamison stepped inside, Ned's partner. "What's this?" The older black man chuckled. "I'm for equality and all, but I thought you were good with Katie?"

"That's what this is about," LeTrai stood up. "Just giving Ned some ideas. He thought he could just ask her to marry him without any of the pretty words."

Jamison shut the door behind him, chuckling. "When I proposed to my wife… I told her how much she meant to me and how happy I would be if she would let me marry her. What are you going to say?"

Ned took a deep breath, trying to imagine that Katie was in front of him.

"The first time I met you, I knew you would have a special place in my life. And there was a time I was scared that I would never see you again and that thought broke me. I was afraid that I would never see your smile or hear your laugh, so I took a chance and went to see you. I made up that I was in town to see a friend and you wanted me to come by" He thought of the way Katie would smile at him as he continued. "Thank God for lucky chances because everything since that night has been a crazy, beautiful ride. I don't regret a single moment and I hope you don't either. Will you marry me?"

He opened his eyes then and saw that both Jamison and LeTrai were nodding their heads.

"That's perfect," his partner Jamison said happily. "You were perfect and Katie, even though she can, she would never say no to you."

"You think?" He grinned, standing up.

"Yes," both men said.

* * *

When Ned had gone to Melinda's shop that afternoon, the last thing he'd expected to happen, happened.

"So, what brings you by Ned?" Melinda said, smiling at him. "Your mom is out, if you're looking for her. She should be back in a few minutes."

Ned nodded, but smiled anyway. "That's actually not why I'm here." He stepped closer to the counter. "I'm here to look at rings."

"For Katie?" Melinda's mouth quirked up into a smile, even as her eyes darted away when the door opened and his mother walked in.

"Yes," he said, turning to see his mother. "If you could keep it between us."

"Of course," Melinda winked and nodded as the phone rang. "I have a few that you can look at, just let me grab the phone first."

Ned gulped and nodded. Now he just had to avoid the questions that came from his mother as Delia walked over to him.

"What brings you by?" Delia asked.

"I was just stopping by to talk to Melinda. Katie needed me to tell her something," he said the first thing that came to the top of his head.

"Oh? About what?" Delia set out to begin dusting a few displays like she always did. "How is Katie doing?"

Ned pondered his reply. He knew that Katie was doing good, for what had just happened. But should he tell his mother exactly what was going on?

Melinda walked out a moment later, her face as white as a sheet as she put down the phone that was in her hand. "Um, I need to go. Right now." She walked over to the counter and looked around for her purse. "Where the hell is my purse? I need to go."

"Melinda," Ned came around the counter and hugged her briefly. "Just breathe." He grabbed her purse from where it sat underneath the counter and gave it to her. "What's going on?"

"Jim- he, um," Melinda's voice cracked and a few tears rolled down her cheeks as she grabbed her purse from him. "He just had a heart attack. I need to get to the hospital. I told Aaron to call Katie, will you go over there?"

Ned nodded and hugged her again. This was the last thing he'd seen happening today.


	31. Chapter 31

As Ned ran across the square, he grabbed his phone out of his pocket and called Katie. When she didn't answer, his blood ran cold. He didn't want her to go through this alone.

Heart attacks were a silent killer and he hated to think of losing Jim. He had lost his father when he was young. Too young to even really remember him, but Katie had always had her dad there. He didn't want her to lose him.

He ran back to his truck and called Katie again. She didn't pick up again, and he was forced to leave her a rambling, frantic message.

"Katie...hey...I was at the shop with your mom. I don't know if you know what's going on with your dad, but I need you to call me back. I'm going to your parent's house to get your brother. I need to see you, wherever you are. I need to know you're alright. Please call me as soon as you get this. Love you. Umm...okay...bye."

He hung up with a knot in his stomach and an anxious feeling pressing down on his chest. He shook his head with a pained sort of laugh escaping from his lips. Of course, this would happen just as he finally felt like he figured out what he wanted. That he wanted to marry her.

He started to drive, being careful not to speed as he anxiously waited for his phone to ring. Finally, as he was turning into the driveway in front of the Clancy house, Katie called.

"Hey, where are you?" He could feel himself trembling, and he realized just how important Katie and her family had become in his life. They were all he really had besides his mom.

"I'm outside the hospital. I went to the sitter's house to get Lana. I haven't gone inside with her yet." She whispered softly, but the background was filled with the nonsense talk of the three-year-old they were talking about. "Are you at my parent's house?"

"Yes. I just got here. I'll bring whoever is here to the hospital." He said as he honked his horn twice. "Are you okay?"

"I think it's just Mack and Aaron, but I don't know if their friends are still there. I have to be calm for my mom," her voice was shaky on the other end and he wished more than anything to be there for her right now. "I'm trying to get it together before I go in there. I'm sorry I missed your call."

"Hey, it's okay." He said, trying to keep his voice calm for her. "I'll be there in a few minutes. You can wait for me, if you want."

She took in a deep breath. "I think I'm gonna go in. Lana is getting antsy, she's starting to realize something is wrong with dad so I should probably talk to her before we go inside. I'll see you soon, Ned. I love you."

He smiled, even now. "You'll know what to say to her. Just be calm and breathe. You'll figure it out. I love you."

* * *

After Ned parked his truck and he, Mack and Aaron started to walk toward the front doors. Relief started to wash over him as Katie came through them, hugging both of her siblings and meeting his gaze over Mackenzie's head.

"Hey, mom is in the waiting room on the cardiac floor with Lana. Will you two keep them company while I talk to Ned alone?" She asked, giving them each a hug as they walked toward the door.

Katie explained what had happened to him in as much detail as she could. Her dad had been playing basketball with Aaron, Mack and a few other neighbor kids when he'd collapsed. Jim had woken with a pain in his chest that shot up his arm and Aaron had called 911. The doctors were just starting to run tests.

"It's really overwhelming there," she whispered. "My mom is still crying and your mom had to go, so I was the only one she could lean on."

He hugged her, hoping they would feel better, but there was still a nagging feeling in his chest that he couldn't shake. He realized as he stood with her for this moment, that it was the fact that he had been planning to approach her dad about his feelings for wanting to marry Katie and hadn't gotten the chance.

And now, with Jim recovering from a mild heart attack, he was going to be hard-pressed to find a good time to bring that up.

She slid out of his arms a few moments later, looking frazzled and tired. "I'm so glad you came here so fast." She whispered, enveloping him in another hug. "You even got Mack and Aaron. Thank you."

"I did everything I could to make it easier on your mom. She just needed to get to the hospital. It's gonna be alright, Katie. Your dad is gonna be okay." He whispered, kissing her cheek. He could feel her cry, letting go into his jacket. She'd been strong for her mother, holding her hand while they waited for news. "He'll be okay."

"I really hope so," she croaked. "I'm so worried Ned. I haven't even seen him yet. I don't think my mom has either. They're still running diagnostic tests on him."

Ned ran his arms up and down her back. "Okay. We should probably get inside and wait to hear from the doctors then, right?" He asked, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

She nodded, smiling a little. "Yeah. I'm really glad you're here."

"Me too. I was worried about you," he said, walking with her toward the front doors.

They got into the elevator and got off on the third floor. As they walked closer to the waiting room, they spotted Melinda, who was holding Emma on her hip. Her mother turned around when she heard them approaching and walked toward them. Katie and Ned's eyes met and she could see that he was trying to figure out how to comfort her. He didn't realize that just being there was enough for her.

"Melinda," Ned went to her mother, his finger running against his Emma's cheek. "Are you okay?" The woman came up to them and he gently pulled her into his arms.

"I'm fine; nervous but doing better now that all my kids are here," Melinda reassured him and then smiled at the baby in her arms. "These are bad circumstances for all of us to be together under." Her mother suddenly turned to Ned, eyes wide in realization when she remembered that she was supposed to help with a ring for Katie. "Oh my God, Ned… I didn't even realize that I forgot to help you."

"Help him with what?" Katie asked, coming closer to the two of them.

"With your birthday present silly," Melinda said quickly, hugging her daughter next. Soon she was crumbling, sadness and exhaustion taking over as her arms wrapped around her. "Baby…" She caressed her back, meeting her eyes worriedly. "…It's going to be okay. Your dad is going to pull through."

"Mrs. Clancy?" They all turned to see a tall, mocha-skinned man wearing a white coat over his button-down shirt and slacks. He gave them all a kind smile. "My name is Dr. Henry Wilson and I will be the surgeon during your husband's bypass surgery. Please follow me."

"So he'll need surgery?" Melinda asked as they began to walk.

"There are blockages in two arteries," the doctor explained. "It was an angina heart attack, so not as serious as it could've been," the doctor continued. "However, the blockages are significant enough to draw concern that it could have caused a massive heart attack. We will stop his heart during the surgery, of course, but use the CPB pump in the interim."

"You're going to stop our dad's heart?" Mackenzie blurted out loud. "And what's a CPB pump?" She asked as they made a turn down the hallway.

"It is a machine that will maintain blood flow and oxygen while the heart is stopped," the man explained. They stopped suddenly in front of a closed door. "This is his room, and he has been given some medication for the pain." The surgeon looked at them, seriousness in his eyes. "I would like to get him into surgery as soon as possible—the reason I waited this long was because I wanted to check the tests just to confirm my suspicions. I'll give you a few minutes and we would like it to be family only."

His eyes met Ned's and Katie turned to glance at him. She was going to say something, probably bite the head off of the doctor, but he shook his head.

"It's fine," he said, squeezing her hand. "You go on ahead—I'll wait here." He looked at Melinda, Aaron, and Mackenzie. "Did you three need anything or did you want me to call anyone?"

"No, I already Faith and she's on her way. Your mom's watching Lana. Your sweet for asking though," Melinda said affectionately, her eyes watery again. "I think we're fine."

"I'm okay," Mackenzie replied before rushing over to throw her arms around him. The ten-year-old whispered in his head. "My mom told me by accident. I am so happy for you, big brother. I'll finally have two now." She pulled away and gave him a small smile.

"Thanks, Mack," he agreed and looked over at Katie. "Make sure that your mom's okay in there."

The girl nodded and went to her mother and older brother. Together, they opened the door and went inside.

Ned went to Katie. "Tell your Dad that I'm praying for him," he told her as his arms encircled her waist to draw her close.

"Do you believe in prayer?" she asked, her brow furrowed at him.

"I believe in having hope," he replied. "Situations like this give you the opportunity to hope, you know. I care about your dad a lot."

"I never thought about it that way." Katie met his lips with hers briefly. "Thank you for telling me that. I'm so glad you're here. I wish you could come in." She looked over at the door and turned back to look at him somberly. "I should probably go in there soon."

"Go on," he urged and she nodded before opening the door to go inside.

* * *

Katie quietly closed the door behind her. She could hear the hushed tones of her mother speaking as she approached the curtain.

"I've already called your mom," her mother said quietly, her voice quick and rushing through words. "She's going to take the kids home once she gets here."

"That's a good plan," her father whispered, his voice scratchy. "Oh, Mel, don't cry. I'm gonna be okay."

"You don't know that for sure," her mother sniffled. "I'm so worried, Jim."

Peeking in, she saw that her mother was sitting on one side of the bed as Aaron stood by the window to look out. Mack was sitting in a chair, her eyes focused on the machines connected to their father. The quiet beeps of the monitors broke through the heavy air every few seconds.

She didn't like seeing her father like this. He was her superman, never sick and never in pain, but to see him like this broke her heart.

"Katiebug," her dad's hoarse voice broke through her thoughts and he gave her a weak smile. "Hey, honey."

"Hi, daddy." Katie's eyes watered immediately and she didn't know whether to stay where she was or walk over to the other side of him.

"Come here," he replied easily and held his hand out to her. Her mother got up from her chair so that she could sit next to her father. Katie took his hand and he gave her a reassuring squeeze. "It's going to be okay. From what the doctor's told me, I'm pretty lucky."

"I know." She swiped her eyes quickly and sighed. "I just I thought I was going to lose you. I didn't know if I could make it without your jokes and good food."

"I know, sweetheart," her father replied and gave her a smile. "But you've flourished so much in New York and you fell in love with Ned, and now you're back home. It will make you better together."

"It has," she said softly and took his hand, she squeezed it. "Dad—" she began. There were so many things she wanted to tell him. Just in case. It was almost like she'd forgotten she could still see him after, but that was her worst nightmare. Nothing seemed right at all, so she just said what came to her. "Dad—I love you. Just wake up as soon as you can."

"Of course, Katiebug," he told her.

There was a knock on the door and a pretty nurse with dark, curly hair walked in swiftly holding a kidney-shaped container.

"My name is Gina and I'm going to be your pre-op nurse. I'm here to administer your medications, Dr. Clancy," the nurse informed her father as she walked over to where the box of gloves hung on the wall. After pulling a pair on, she walked over and placed the container on the side table. "I'm going to flush out your IV with some saline, and then I'll be administering some pain medication, followed by one more saline flush. After our transport, I'll be taking you to the operating room," Gina continued as she took out the syringe from the tray along with the bottle of saline to fill it. "I'm going to give you a few minutes after I'm done. I'll also write down my name along with the extension number for you at the nurses' station on the whiteboard next to the door. But now I'm going to start your first saline flush."

Her father nodded and then turned to Katie. "Where's Ned?"

She looked over to where the nurse was pushing the saline through his IV line slowly, then back at him. "In the hallway," she said. "They wouldn't let him in here."

Katie watched her mother take her father's other hand and her eyes caught the glint of their wedding rings. She had remembered looking at their wedding photos when she was a little girl as she planned her own dream wedding to her teddy bear. She'd remembered planning hers with Ned when she was thirteen too.

She had hoped for a simple outdoor wedding (even at thirteen). If it was a beach, she would be barefoot during the ceremony and maybe wear a simple wreath of flowers on her head. In her dreams, Ned would opt for a simple button down and slacks as well as a pair of loafers.

"Go get him, Katie," her father urged, his eyes encouraging. Mackenzie sat at the edge of their father's bed and nodded at her, the shine of her tears swimming in her blue eyes. "He's family."

She nodded and stood up. "Okay."

Melinda retook her spot as Katie went into the hallway, seeing Ned leaning against the wall. He had his phone pressed to his ear and was probably talking to his boss.

"Hey," she said as she waved.

"Yeah, I'm still at the hospital. I should let you go. I'll call you back in a bit, Captain." He said, hanging up the phone. "Hey. How'd it go?"

"Good, my dad's still Superman even when he's in the hospital." She chuckled, hugging him. "He wants you in there with us."

"But the doctor said,"

"What's he gonna do? My dad's still the chief," she shrugged, grabbing hold of his hand and pulling him closer to her to hug him again. "And he said you're family."

He turned his head to press a kiss to her neck as he hugged her tightly. "Okay. Let's go in there."

* * *

Katie rushed over to Ned after she said another goodbye to her dad before his surgery. He pulled her in his arm, her head falling against his shoulder and lips brushing his neck.

"How is he?" He asked, glancing over at the doors as though he could still see Jim through the little windows.

"He's in good spirits," she told him, surrounding herself in his scent—a combination of his cologne and sweat.

"Sounds promising." He said, rubbing his hand up and down her back. "Let's go talk to your mom."

She knew he was right. She nodded and smiled at him.

Together, they went to where her mother and siblings sat tiredly. Melinda was clearly on the verge of falling asleep.

"Do you think we should go home?" Katie asked. "It might be hours before we hear anything."

"I don't know," her mother said worriedly. "I just don't want your dad to be alone. I don't think I can leave tonight."

"Mom, you need to rest," she told her. "We have Gina's number just in case. And it's not like everyone in the hospital isn't worried about dad. They'll call."

"She's right, you know." They looked up to see Gina walking over to them. "I just wanted to give you my information again and the hours I will be here. I think with the way the schedule is planned, I will be Mr. Clancy's post-op nurse, too." She held out a card for Melinda, gave one to Katie, and the last one to Ned. "It will definitely be a while before you hear anything, so go home and get some rest if you can."

Her eyes flitted over to Katie and Ned and she smiled at them. "He was bragging to the transport team about you making the Dean's list again. He's so excited your back home."

Ned felt Katie's hand tighten around his. He could tell that she was desperately trying to hold it in. "Thanks, Gina," she said shakily.

"I'll contact you once they're done." With a final wave, Gina walked back through the double doors to the restricted area.

Katie walked back over to her mother and Ned, glancing at them both. "What do you think? Should we go home?"

"You take the kids. I'll stay," Her mother said and walked back over to the nurse's station. "I can't leave, Katie."

She looked over her shoulder and bit her lip. "Should I go after he?" She asked.

"No. I think she'd be out of her mind just as much back at home." Ned said, wrapping his arm around her. "If your mom wants to stay and wait for your dad then she should. She's an adult and his wife. You would stay if it was me."

She nodded slowly. "Let's go get my siblings together and updated then." She said, glancing over to where Aaron was corralling Lana who was a ball of energy even at eleven at night, while Mackenzie sat on a nearby chair playing on her phone. "Hey."

"I was thinking I'd drive Mom, Mack, and Lana back to the house," Aaron said. "I just got my license last year, remember?"

Katie looked over and Ned and then sighed as he nodded. "Mom's staying with dad, but you can drive her jeep with Mack and Lana if you promise to go to the speed limit."

"I will," Aaron said, nodding and taking the keys from her hands. "Are you coming home tonight? I mean, I can handle the fort if you aren't."

"We're coming to the house," Ned said. "We're just taking a pitstop."

Her brother nodded and then picked up Lana and got Mack up and walking toward the elevators.

"Where are we going?" she asked, her hand resting on his arm. The doors to the elevator opened and they walked in quickly. Katie watched him push the button to the first floor and she looked over at him. A small smile played on his lips. "You're up to something."

He looked over at her with bright eyes. "Me? Never." The doors opened and taking her hand, Ned led her over to where he'd parked the car. "I just wanted to make you feel better. I thought we could go get ice cream."

"I like ice cream," she laughed and pressed a kiss to his lips.

* * *

Later that night, in the wee hours of the head and instead of being in bed, Ned was in the living room of the Clancy house. He was attempting to read a file to cure his insomnia, but he couldn't focus. His mind kept wandering to Katie and her father, his gaze drifting out the window to where he wished he could see the hospital.

At some point, he must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew, he was being awoken by the sound of soft taps of someone touching him. He sat up in surprise, his face dry from where it had been resting against the pages of the file. He ran a hand through his hair and yawned as he attempted to see.

He didn't even get a chance to properly look at her. He was only able to briefly recognize the figure of his girlfriend as Katie before she flung herself at him, wrapping her hands around his neck, pulling his mouth down for a kiss.

He was so surprised at first that his mouth was simply slack, not returning the passion of her kiss. And then, when his brain processed that this was really happening, he closed the door and pulled her more firmly against him. He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, he cradled her face with his hand, he tightened his grip on her waist, pulling her closer, and even closer still.

"Ned..." she whimpered when they pulled away to catch their breath, but he couldn't bear the idea of not kissing her now that he knew what it felt like. "I couldn't sleep. I know it's what I wanted to do so we could be better tomorrow... but I was too... tense."

"I understand," he whispered, nodding. "I couldn't sleep either. I was trying to get some work done, but must've fallen asleep."

She nodded and then he kissed her again. His tongue sought entry to her mouth eagerly, pushing and stroking and tasting. She melted into him; they were breathing through each other, ragged gasps and wandering hands.

"Please... make it all go away," she started chanting over and over again, and his brain didn't even register her plea until he felt her leading him down to the basement.

Once they were downstairs, Katie pushed him down to sit on the edge of the bed and he looked up at her stunned, his brain clouded with lust and adoration for this woman in front of him.

He watched in a daze as she reached up under the soft cotton sundress she was wearing to remove her panties. And then she was on her knees pulling at the button of his pajama pants. He didn't protest, just lifted his hips to help her as she dragged his pants and boxers down to his ankles, which he promptly kicked off.

His cock was humming with desire, hard and aching for her even as a small voice in the back of his mind still tried to protest. They should talk about why she was so tense. Talk through everything about her dad.

"Katie..." he started to say, trying to form a coherent thought, trying to maintain his composure even now.

"No, Ned, please..." she whimpered, lowering herself to straddle one of his legs. "I'll tell you later."

He jumped when he felt her slick wetness on his thigh, and his hands immediately went to her hips. She gripped onto his shoulders and began rocking back and forth against his thigh, rubbing her center and spreading her arousal on the bare skin of his leg.

"I need you so much," she panted, whimpering as her hips started rocking faster against him. "I just need to forget about this entire day with you." He made a pained sound as if he held back a second longer it would actually kill him.

Then they were on the bed, and one of her legs was over his shoulder. He was buried inside her, each of them making sounds that almost sounded like they were in ecstasy. The feeling of finally being joined again was too much to process.

He could not hold back. She was perfect. She was his.

* * *

Katie opened her eyes, feeling Ned sigh into her neck in his sleep. It had been a tight squeeze in her bed, so they had settled into a comfortable slumber spooning against one another the night before.

He had fallen asleep quickly with his hand resting protectively on her hip, but she had been restless. Her mind remained on the surgery well after Ned had come down with her before she fell asleep at around midnight. The good thing was that their night had gone uninterrupted, which meant that there were probably no issues with the surgery.

She knew Gina would have called if anything bad had happened, even if it had been the middle of the night. There was something inside that told her to trust the nurse.

She pressed against Ned and he groaned in his sleep, pulling her tighter to him. She gasped, feeling her lower half tighten into that pleasurable coil and she couldn't help but push her bottom against the morning erection that he was sporting.

"This is definitely a good way to wake up." She turned her head to find Ned grinning tiredly at her. "Good morning."

"Morning," she said and kissed him softly. "Did you sleep well?"

"Maybe we should get a smaller bed than a king—I like the tighter fit," he joked.

"Give it a few days and you'll change your mind." Katie took his hand and unconsciously pressed her lips to his fingers.

He hissed quietly, his eyes trained on the woman in front of him. "What are you doing?"

She straddled him carefully, her eyes almost rolling back at the sensation. "Haven't you ever had a fantasy of messing around in your girlfriend's old bed?"

The craving to have him had only grown over the past week. Even after they'd just almost got pregnant.

"What guy hasn't?" he replied as he guided her hips, letting her press her damp core against him. "But it's not like we didn't do this last night."

She shook her head, her core throbbing. "I know and this isn't exactly my old bedroom," she told him in a rushed voice. "But I have a million sexy thoughts running through my head about you right now—"

"Since you've been thinking about me… I guess we can..." His hand moved to slide the strap her top and reached in to caress her breast. With the amount of blood coursing through her, every touch was like electricity and her body hummed in gratitude.

**RING!**

"FUCK!" Katie reached for her phone and looked at it irritatingly. "It's Hannah." She promptly ignored it and then turned back to kiss him. His hand resumed its tender squeezing of her breast.

**RING!**

This time it was Ned's phone and he looked over at it. "It's my mom."

Then it sounded like the basement door opened and a knock came on the wall. "Katie?" It was her brother's voice this time.

She sighed and pressed her face against his shoulder. "I really want to go our apartment tonight," she said as she moved off of him.

"I owe you one," he told her as he picked up his phone and rolled onto his stomach.

Walking back to the stairs, she looked at him with a smile as she fixed her top slightly. "Over and over and over again..." She turned and met her brother's half asleep eyes.

"I just got a call from mom," her brother yawned, but his face told her she was happy. "The surgery went well and dad is in the recovery wing. She says we should eat some breakfast and get over there."

"Thank God, that's awesome— and okay we'll be ready in a few minutes." She said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Can you keep everyone upstairs in the meantime?"

"Yeah, sure, but Katie?" Her brother said, stepping down one more step to glance over at Ned and then back at her. "You realize that your boob is almost out and I can read between the lines, right?" Melinda chuckled.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Final chapter! Hope you guys enjoy and check out my new AU Katie and Ned troupe story called Different Worlds :) xx Mariah**

* * *

When Ned finally got the chance to talk to Jim, he'd gotten a ring from Melinda and Jim had been moved from ICU to a recovery room.

He knocked on the door as he walked inside. "Hey, Jim," he smiled. "How are you feeling?"

The man looked up from his Sudoku, raising his glasses off his nose. "I'm feeling better. Melinda's keeping me entertained with all these ."

He nodded, a smile on his face. At least Jim was feeling better and getting to spend his time with Melinda under these circumstances. "Where is she?" He asked.

"She stepped out to get a bite to eat," Jim said, glancing over him. "You're here to talk about something important, aren't you? Your hands keep fidgeting like when you were a teenager."

He chuckled and came toward the bed. "Yes. I'm here to talk to you about something."

"Ned, what can I do for you?" Jim said as he put his sudoku book down. "Need money? Something wrong with Katie?"

"No, sir. I'm good. Katie's good." He shook his head. "I do have a question to ask you though." He played with the label on his jacket.

He caught sight of the watch on his wrist. 2:45. Katie would be finishing up at the college soon. He wanted to be home before she got there and make her none the wiser.

One thing he didn't need to do was mess up this proposal.

"Well out with it then, Ned," Jim looked at him, narrowing his eyes.

"As you know, I love Katie very much. More than anything in this world." Jim nodded as he began to speak. "And I know we've had a little bit of a rough ride with almost breaking up this spring, but I feel like we're in solid place, a good place. Where we're meant to be."

Jim nodded, swallowing hard. By the face he was making, Ned felt like he knew where this was going.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'd really like your permission to ask Katie to marry me." He dug into the pocket of the coat he was wearing and pulled out a velvet box. The same one that Melinda had just given him a few days ago. He opened the box and showed him the ring inside as the door opened.

Ned shot around, just in case it was Katie. It wasn't.

"Relax. It's just Mel." Jim said softly, not taking his eyes off the ring. Ned had picked out the one that had her birthstone as the main gem. "That's a gorgeous ring, Ned."

"Thanks." He said softly. "Took a little while to find it. Almost gave up, but Melinda found this."

Jim turned his attention back to Ned for a moment after being drawn in by the ring. "What makes you think you're good enough for my daughter?" He leaned back into the bed, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Oh honey, be easy on him." Melinda scoffed, tapping his arm lightly as she sat down beside him and opened her book.

"Jim," he said softly. "I love your daughter. I've loved her since before I was supposed to. She's my world. I would jump in front of a bullet if it would mean saving her life. She is my first thought in the morning and my last thought at night. When she's gone, when she's at work all I can think about is how to make t go by faster so that I can get home to her and see her again." He paused, knowing that Jim could easily bring up this spring as something that was very concerning. "I know that we almost broke up way back in March but...that time away from her made me realize how much I love her and things have just been amazing since we've been back together, especially now that she's back home. I just...I cannot picture my life without her. So please, can I marry your daughter?" He asked, looking at the two of them.

He hated how pleading his voice sounded. He'd told himself he'd be a man about this. Clearly, his emotions were getting the best of him. He just needed them to know how he felt about Katie.

"Well..." Jim paused and looked over at Melinda, who'd put down her book by the time Ned had started talking. "What do you think?"

Melinda tapped her fingers on her book and nodded to Jim as she squeezed his hand.

"We couldn't imagine anyone better for our daughter, Ned." He winked at him. "I just wanted to make you sweat a little."

A feeling of relief flooded him. "Oh, Jim… Melinda," he sighed, leaning back in his chair, slumping down. "Thank you."

"Did you really have to ask me?" Melinda resumed reading her book. "I'm the one who found the ring for damn sake!"

Jim and Ned both laughed and the father took another chance to look at the ring that sat on the table in front of him before he gave it back to Ned. "Now, how are you going to do it and when?" Jim asked.

* * *

Ned pulled up in his parking place outside his apartment a little after four. He knew that Katie was home by the time he got there because her car was next to his, but he didn't mind. There was no way that she had any idea what he had planned for her tonight.

He had started off by going to the flower shop and getting Katie's favorite flowers. Then he'd gone to the grocery store and got some ice cream and wine. He knew that they were out from the last few days.

It's nearly four thirty when Ned put his key in the door. He walked inside to see Katie on the couch with her laptop on her lap.

"You know," she said, holding her phone in one hand and typing with the other. "Maybe this ghost doesn't want to be found."

"Yeah, I don't know Katie." Her mother sighed on the other end of the phone. "I'm gonna let all this just sit for a night. Don't stress too much about this."

Ned turned to shut the door and tossed his keys in the bowl by the door. He started to walk toward the couch just as she turned to look at him.

"I'll try not to," she muttered, waving at him. "Ned's here. I should let you go."

"Alrighty honey, try to have a nice night. Tell Ned I say hello," her mother said

"I will. Love you," she said before she hung up.

He leaned down over the couch to press a kiss to her lips as he brought the flowers to rest on top of her keyboard. As he pulled back, he smiled and moved around the couch to sit on the other end. "Hey. How was your day?"

"Good, it was kinda long. I have a lot of things to get done before the end of the weekend. What are these for?" She asked, bringing the flowers to her nose. "As nice as they are, they had to of cost you a fortune."

"Yeah they were, but you're worth it." he snorted and leaned over to kiss her. "I got some ice cream and wine too."

She rolled her eyes when he pulled them out and set them on the table. She took another second to breathe in her flowers before she set them down. "What are you planning?"

"Nothing," he said, laughing as he stood up and grabbed the ice cream. "I'll put this away and get a bottle opener. I just wanted to enjoy our first night alone now that we're not staying at your parent's anymore."

He loosened a few top buttons of his shirt, a trail of light blonde hairs peeking out from the 'v' it created, and rolling up the sleeves to his elbows. Although she don't remember ever actually saying anything about it, he must've picked up on how much she liked these types of shirts on his own, because he seems to wear them more often these days.

"Hey, Katie? Do you remember where I put the bottle opener?" he asked from inside the kitchen.

She came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his chest and allow her fingers to trace languid patterns over his exposed skin.

"I think you stuck it to the fridge," she mumbled into his skin, allowing him to pull him into his front, where he readily wrapped his arms around her and placed a soft kiss on the scalp of her head. "Remember it's a magnet?"

"Oh, yeah! Here it is." He said against her forehead and reached to grab it. He stepped back and looked over her. "Is this dress new?"

She shrugged. "It's one in the back of my closet. I was in a hurry in between classes. I'd tripped and ripped my other one and messed up my tights." She made her way back over to the couch before falling back so that only her legs dangle over the side. She didn't care that her dress had slid up to her hips, revealing the obnoxious hole in her tights right over her left thigh, or that her hair had almost fallen out of her updo. "See?"

"Ah, poor Katie." He said, kneeling down to press a kiss to the hole. "You're such a clutz."

"Lately," she groaned and threatened to kick him and he moved to sit on the couch. She didn't know if he noticed her sudden intake of breath as the cool air chilled her from his kiss, so she'd tried to play it off.

He definitely had. He chuckled as the couch dipped beside her. A pair of strong arms pulled her in closer until her head rested against him and his fingers tangled themselves through her hair. She sighed in contentment, taking his free hand in her own so that she can trace over his arms with her fingertips.

"You know, this last year and a half had been the best of my life." He said.

"I know," she smiled because he told her all the time. She glanced up to meet his eyes, they're focused intently on her, a gentle smile on his content face as he nodded in agreement. "They have been for me too."

"They weren't the easiest," he ran his hand through her hair. "I'm sorry for any pain I've caused you and I wish I could take things back."

"But you can't," she said, squeezing his hand. "That's why we've moved past them. Ned, I love you and nothing's ever going to change that." She felt her cheeks grow hot but laughed anyway. "I've loved you since I was thirteen."

"Yeah, I guess I'm lucky," he said, breath fanning across her face before he straightened up, continuing to strum his fingers through her hair. "I love you too."

"You are incredibly sappy tonight," she said, smacking his chest teasingly with the back of her hand. "What are you planning on proposing to me next?"

"Maybe," he shrugged.

They stared at each other in silence for all of thirty seconds. When he didn't flinch, or laugh, or show any sign of joking at all, she forced herself up into a sitting position so she could watch him carefully.

"Ned," she barely manage, and her voice sounded distant beyond the thrumming in her ears and the rapid pounding in her chest.

Was he going to ask her to marry him? Because she wanted to say yes before he'd even technically asked her.

He stood up and held out his hand and before she could even think about grabbing his hand, she had and was following him into their bedroom. He brought her toward the patio doors and her heart pounded faster.

As the doors opened, he turned to face her as they stepped out together. "It's nice out tonight. We should come out here more," he said, leaning against the railing.

She nodded and took in a deep breath. It was no good for her to panic if he wasn't going to ask.

"Katie," he turned toward her. "I know this is really cheesy, but you're the only woman I could ever picture myself with. When you agreed to b with me, I — well, in all honesty, I almost shit myself — but I couldn't believe that someone as special as you had even considered being with me. You're the only person I want to spend the rest of my life with."

"Ned, I—" she whispered.

He held a finger up to stop her from talking as he dug for something in his pocket. He fished out a sleek velvet box, opening it for her to see.

It was exactly like the ring she'd always told him about. Not many women like non-diamond engagement rings, but she was one of them. While her ring did hold a small diamond in the middle, there were rubies all around it. Her birthstone.

"From the moment I met you, I knew there was something special about you and I was right. You're beautiful, smart and you're the strongest woman I know." He reached out and held her hand in his free one. "I'm lucky just to be holding your hand. I hope that you'll give me the honor of spending the rest of my life with you—" He moved down onto his knee. "Will you marry me?"

"Ned, the ring is beautiful..." She moved down to the ground with him and kissed him. She loved him. She wanted to marry him.

"Is that a yes?" He asked, pulling back and pulling the ring out of the box.

"Yes, I will marry you, Ned." She said and wiped the tears from her eyes. "A million times yes."

"A million times?" he asked, the grin on his face growing.

"Yes," she laughed and kissed him again.

He slid the ring onto her finger and then pulled her into his arms tightly. He lowered his face to

hers and their lips met again. This was the moment she had dreamed of for so long. She was going to marry the love of her life.

* * *

Katie stood at the bar as she and Ned waited for her drinks, taking turns between staring at her ring and then staring at her fiancé. Her fiancé. She could cry just thinking about being married to Ned.

She curled up against his chest, pressing kisses up his neck. "I love you," she whispered, her lips curling up into a smile.

"I love you too," he said, his fingers running up along the expanse of her back. "I'm so happy you said yes."

"I'm so happy you asked," she said smiling up at him. "It was a good idea to go out. We're always staying in these days."

"We have to celebrate. Maybe we can play a game of pool, but my real question is when do you want to get married."

"I don't know for sure yet," she said, smiling at him as she looked over at the bar as their drinks were served. "I was definitely thinking sometime next year and I've always dreamed of a fall wedding because those are my favorite colors."

"I was thinking sooner, maybe in the winter?" He asked.

"That's really soon," she said, biting her lip and going to grab her Manhattan and his tap beer. "What about the summer? That way we won't have to worry about my school schedule."

"Summer would be nice. Can I wear khaki shorts?" He asked and took his beer from her.

"No way," she laughed and rolled her eyes. "C'mon one of the pool tables is open."

"Least I could do was ask," he chuckled and pressed his lips against her cheek, wrapping his arm around her.

They walked to the table, setting their drinks on a nearby tables and Katie's trying to choose which stick she wants when she heard a thunderous crack. She turned to see Ned split the balls across the table and sink two solids in the hole. It looks like he'd set up a quick game and leaned against his pool cue while he debated his next and hopefully winning shot.

God, he was so hot when he was thinking about something intensely. The way his brow arched and fingers came to his chin.

A moment later he lined up the shot for the yellow solid. He's not very good though at a far shot, and the ball was deflected against a wall and away from any of the pockets.

Katie took her turn, aligning the one ball with the nine, ending the game with a single stroke.

"Well that was fun," he said dryly.

"Sorry. My dad taught me," she shrugged.

"I was kind of hoping you'd be bad," he admitted, bouncing the cue ball against the far wall of the table. "And you'd let me teach you."

"Oh?" She asked.

He blushed and shook his head with a chuckle. "Wow, that sounded sort of misogynistic, didn't it?" He pauses, and when his eyes lock with hers they're clouded with a darkness she recognizes. It took her breath away. "It's this fantasy I have."

"How–" her voice cracked. "How does it go?"

He licked his lips, causing her stomach to clench. He rounded the pool table and extended his pool cue to her. "You, uh, you need help lining up your shot." He guided her to where the cue ball was.

She positions the pool stick to take a shot by bending over the edge of the table, her backside connecting with his groin in the process.

"Like this, right?" she said over her shoulder as she bit her lip.

Ned's eyes shut tightly and he lets out a chuckle. "Katie," his mouth turned up into a grin.

Instantly she felt him begin to harden against her, sending a surge of heat straight through her. She swiveled her hips against his experimentally, and he gripped her waist to angle her movement over his erection.

"And then I show you this trick," he said, clearing his throat and his voice was so low, it almost sounded like a different person. One hand slid down her arm placed on the table, and the other ghosts up her side and past her breast to her elbow. She shivered against the warmth of his chest, which has swallowed her completely with his body pressed against hers.

He aligned her elbow so that it's high, and hung like a pivot. "Now shoot straight," he murmured into her ear as he pressed a kiss to her neck.

She released the cue and it scratched the table, leaving a blue trail in the felt, but she doesn't care because his lips are hot on her neck, and his arm had wrapped around her waist to massage her breast, and he's pressing against her and it all felt so deliriously good.

She slowly stood up and turned around, looking up at him. "Let's finish this drink and go home," she smirked, widening her stance just slightly for him to fit more snugly against her.

"I like hat idea," he grinned, dipping his hand between her legs to rub up against her thighs.

Her elbow buckles and she leaned against the table, biting her lip to keep from moaning. They were in public afterall.

"Yes," she whimpered. "Me too. I want you bad."

"What's one of your fantasies?" He whispered.

She turned in his arms to face him and smiled as she thought about what she wanted to say. "Somewhere private, but kind of in the open?" She asked, raising onto her tiptoes to keep in contact with his lips briefly. He begins to lift her onto the edge of the pool table, but she slowly stopped him as she looked around the bar. "Not private enough," she whispered.

"I know," he said, chuckling. "Where do you think we could go?"

"Maybe the park? We could go look at the stars and fool around," she said, slipping off the table over to grab her drink and take a big sip.

"Okay. Good idea," he grinned, pressing a kiss to her cheek.


End file.
